Moon and Destiny Tsuki to Shukuen
by ZeroSoul
Summary: Tsuki and Shukuen are the children of Kagome and Inuyasha. Picture perfect family? Guess again. Tsuki is a tomboy, Shukuen is being bullied, and Shippou is a delinquent. Welcome to the future. [completed]
1. Act 1

Moon and Destiny (Tsuki to Shukuen)

by ZeroSoul

Welcome to my 1st fanfic in about…thinks…maybe a good 6 years? ;.; I guess I'll putthe disclaimer here: I don't own Inu-Yasha and if I did…why am I so lacking in money? I guess I just own my own little made-up characters. hugs characters invented for fanfiction Also…about the name meanings…

Tsuki: moon

Shukuen: destiny

Reichou: sacred bird

And as for the words…umm…I don't speak Japanese so I had to use a translator. I know (or hope so) that Tsuki means moon. As for everything else, I had to use the translator. Thanks for reading and on with the fanfic!

Act 1:

"Okay, this is the deal," Shippou said, "You're sleeping over at Hanako's house, Reichou is over at Yura's house, and I'm over at Maru's. Screw this up, Tsuki, and we're all doomed. Can you remember that?"

"Are you _kidding_ me?" Tsuki laughed. She playfully punched Shippou in the arm, "I've pulled the wool over my Dad's eyes ever since I was 10! This is kid's stuff! _Where's_ the excitement?"

"Oh, there'll be excitement alright…" Shippou laughed, "Just remember the plan!"

"Piece of cake," Tsuki said.

Shippou went on his way. Tsuki smiled as she headed for the house. She creaked open the door carefully and began to sneak up in direction of her room. All she had to do was to avoid Mom and Dad until dinnertime and that's when she would break the news. Mom would encourage her to do something "girlish" for a little while. Girlish? Tsuki? Yeah…right.

"Tsuki, I know what you're doing," said a voice. Deep, masculine, definitely older than her…it had to be one certain person Tsuki had always recognized ever since she was born.

Dad.

"Hey, Dad," Tsuki said, smiling as sweetly as possible.

"I called Miroku and Sango and they say both Shippou and Reichou are grounded," her father answered, "and that includes _you_, Tsuki,"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Tsuki answered.

"You know as well as I do!" her father snapped, "Ever since you turned 15, you've been acting like a delinquent – fights at school, skipping classes, sneaking out at night…what is this all about, Tsuki? You never used to be this way,"

"I've always been this way," Tsuki snarled. She stared her father in his yellow eyes, "you've just been so busy with _Shukuen_ to notice,"

Her father gave a feeble attempt to hold onto his paternal control, "Go up to your room, now. You're grounded for two weeks. No television, no phone, no computer–"

"Yeah, yeah," Tsuki snorted as she stopped up the stairs, "I know the drill," The door of her room slammed, almost splintering the wood it was made of.

Her father sighed, leaning against the wall.

The brave and heroic Inu-Yasha, a hanyou who had come from the Sengoku Jidai period to the present day by means of a magic portal. Ex-lover of the powerful priestess Kikyo. Lover of Kagome, the reincarnation of Kikyo. He once sought the Jewel of the Four Souls in order to become fully demon.

He had slain the evil Naraku.

He had fought and won against his half brother Sesshoumaru.

…and yet he was having a difficulty he had never faced before with his own flesh and blood; his oldest child – his teenaged daughter Tsuki.

Shukuen stood in the park, feeling awkward as he looked around for Yuki. He could see a group of boys from school walking on the other side of the street. He knew all their names. The tall one with the spiked blonde hair was Kentaro. Miki, the short guy with a mouth big enough to count for 4 guys his size. Takeo was the muscle of the team; big guy with muscles hard enough to turn coal into diamonds.

Shukuen looked for a tree to duck behind or a restroom building to hide in, but they saw him first. Before Shukuen could blink, Kentaro had pushed him into the ground, laughing as he spit up dirt.

"What's wrong, Shukuen?" Kentaro said, laughing. He took his shoe and ground it into Shukuen's head, pushing it back down into the dirt, "I thought your kind liked to eat dirt!" He snickered and Takeo and Miki did too. "My bad, I guess,"

Shukuen said nothing, _'…ignore it…just ignore them…just…'_

"Look at him, Ken!" Miki laughed. An impish little laugh, "He's ready to cry!" He had a smug look on his face. "What's wrong, Shukuen? You only have something big to say when your big sister is around to protect you and your little boyfriend!"

"Leave Yuki out of this!" Shukuen yelled suddenly, a strange fierceness in his green eyes. He then shrunk back when he realized what he had done.

"What did you say, _bitch_?" Kentaro growled. He snatched up Shukuen by the collar of his shirt. Shukuen didn't answer and Kentaro smirked, "Yeah, _thought_ so. But just to make sure…"

Shukuen felt Kentaro's knuckles slam into his stomach. He jerked and let a groan as Kentaro dropped him onto the ground like a broken doll. Shukuen cringed on the ground and clutched his stomach.

"That should teach him a lesson," Takeo laughed.

Shukuen was shaking all over. Those bastards. Those bastards they would pay one day. One day they would all pay. One day he would get his mother's old bow and arrow set and…

_'NO!'_ Shukuen cried mentally, _'Can't think that way. Can't let the bad thoughts get to me. Can't let them get in my head. Can't let me make me…'_

Miki kicked dirt onto Shukuen, laughing some more. Shukuen cringed, holding his head as the laughing began to flood his mind.

_'…no...can't…I can't let myself…'_

"What are you doing?"

Kentaro, Takeo, and Miki whirled around to see Yuki Monagiri behind them. A senior at their school, with curly red hair and an angered look in his eyes. The trio bolted before Yuki could take another step, knowing that their mischief had been done and they could move onto better things.

Yuki went to Shukuen and helped him stand. Shukuen had started to cry and was speaking through his tears, "Yu-Yuki!" He embraced Yuki, wrapping his arms around him. "Yuki! Oh, Yuki! It was so horrible!"

Yuki nodded, silent as ever.

"Oh…Yuki, my darling Yuki," Shukuen breathed. He wiped away his tears, "I truly did miss you. I came here like you asked over the phone. What do you want, Yuki?"

Yuki stroked Shukuen's cheek, "I just wanted to know if you told your parents yet,"

Shukuen looked away, "No…I'm still scared. If I tell Mom, she'll tell Dad. Dad wants me to be such a manly man, like him. The only person who knows is my sister and our cat Fukakai," Shukuen laughed a little; a little joke to lighten the mood.

Yuki wasn't smiling, "Shukuen, I'm going to tell my parents. I really want you to tell yours. Also, you really should fight those guys back. You can't let them just bully you around,"

Shukuen looked down, "I…_can't_,"

Yuki shrugged, "Just be careful, Shukuen. I don't want you getting hurt and I'm not always going to be here to save you, as much as I wish I could,"

Shukuen nodded as Yuki gave a kiss good-bye. He then decided to head home.

The house was silent as Shukuen entered. He heard the clanking of dishes in the kitchen. He walked into it to see his mother preparing dinner.

"Hey, Mom," Shukuen said, smiling.

"Nice to see you home, honey," his mother said, smiling at him.

Shukuen smiled back. So many people said Shukuen and his mother were like twins, just as Tsuki looked just like their father.

"Where is everyone?" Shukuen said, "The house looks empty,"

His mother sighed, shaking her head, "Tsuki and your father got into a fight again. From what I heard, it seemed he found she was going to go sneak out tonight and he grounded her and sent her to her room. He just went up there, but I don't think it's going well. I hear the yelling from down here,"

"Shouldn't we do something, Mom?" Shukuen said.

His mother shook her head, "No, let them sort it out, Tsuki. It's more of a personal thing between your father and Tsuki. If I step in, they'll never work it out," She sighed. "I should have learned that earlier…"

His mother always blamed herself for Tsuki's tomboyish condition. Shukuen smiled, "Okay…I guess I'll go to the den now. Bye,"

As Shukuen went up the stairs, he could hear the yelling get louder and louder. He had been up five stairs so far.

"YOU'RE A FUCKING HYPOCRITE!"

Shukuen flinched from the profane word. He knew it was Tsuki yelling. She had the talented ability of using all of the swear words in one single sentence. Two more stairs.

"DON'T YOU DARE USE THAT TONE OF VOICE WITH ME!"

Shukuen flinched again from his father yelling at Tsuki in reply – a deep voice that commanded power. Three more stairs.

"WHY THE HELL SHOULD I? WHY THE HELL AM I LISTENING TO HYPROCRITE?"

Shukuen felt like stopping on the staircase. He felt like sitting there in a little ball, trying to blot out the noise. He wanted to…but…he was curious. He wanted to hear the yelling and he wanted to know what they were fighting about. Four more stairs.

"I AM YOUR FATHER AND YOU ARE A CHILD!"

Shukuen's heart was pounding. Five more stairs.

"I'M NOT A DAMN CHILD ANYMORE! I'M A TEENAGER! WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO START TREATING ME LIKE ONE, DAD?"

Shukuen was sweating. One more stair.

"WHEN YOU START ACTING LIKE ONE!"

Shukuen was there. He was only a foot away from the bedroom door.

"WHY DON'T YOU JUST GO TO HELL?!"

The door flew open. Shukuen's father exited the room, red with anger. Shukuen made no sudden movements: he knew Tsuki and his father shared the same bad temper. Here, the last part of the argument was spoken.

"FINE!" his father snorted, "YOU CAN STAY IN THERE! AS A MATTER OF FACT, YOU CAN STAY IN THERE ALL NIGHT BECAUSE YOU'RE GROUNDED FOR THREE WEEKS! AND YOU FORGET ABOUT DINNER TOO!"

Tsuki slammed the door in reply. Shukuen's father stormed off angrily down the stairs, growling a string of curses. Shukuen decided to leave Tsuki alone and just stood there, looking at the scene.

Dad was down in the kitchen, complaining to Mom. Tsuki was in her bedroom, with the sounds of things breaking coming from behind the door. Mom in the middle of it all. Shukuen watching silently by the sidelines.

Just another day in paradise.


	2. Act 2

Hello, readers! I'm so happy to have the first act done. A lot of fanfiction is based on the children of anime characters, but what makes this one different? Well…the DRAMA of course. A lot of people are probably wondering about the character ages. So…

Tsuki: 16 years

Shukuen: 14 years

Reichou: 15 years

Shippou: 17 years

As the disclaimer follows, I don't own Inu-Yasha, so please don't sue. On with the fic! Tally ho!

Act 2:

It was like Tsuki was playing a game with Dad, like they used to before Shukuen came along. It was just like basketball, more than anything else. Tsuki had played all types of sports: from soccer to football. She knew the rules, the do's and don'ts. So far, she had found only karate and judo to suffice.

The ball was all the words spoken between them, made into a sphere for play. The courts were downstairs and upstairs. There were four players. Tsuki and her father were the true players, always passing the ball roughly back and forth. Her mother was the referee: observing them for any fouls, but other than that, wouldn't interfere. Her brother Shukuen, the spectator. He sat by the sidelines watching what occurred, his eyes darting around the courts, watching where the ball went. He never took his eyes off if it. Unlike more spectators, who were often loud and excited, Shukuen was silent and merely watch, as if he was never there.

The door opened. Tsuki had been in her room, acting out her anger on an old teddy bear. Fukakai, her black cat, laid at her feet, keeping her company. It had been 2 minuets after he had sent her to her room. Tsuki glared at him; her yellow eyes venomous. She had been sitting on her bed, her silver hair spread out over her pillow like vines.

The buzzer rang. The ball tossed in the air. Tsuki went for it, "Decided that I need more time to think about what I've done?"

The ball was tossed, but Dad caught it lightly, "No, I've come to talk to you, Tsuki,"

The ball was tossed back for Tsuki's team's hoop, but Tsuki knocked it out of the way, "Talk? You never talk, Dad. What do you really want?"

The ball was caught by Dad, growling that he didn't make the basket, "Tsuki, listen, we need to talk. I know you're going through a rough patch right now, but that's no excuse to violate my trust. I'm only punishing you because I don't want you to get hurt,"

Tsuki snorted. She snatched the ball from Dad, "Then why did you ignore me?"

The ball taken back, "Ignore you?

The ball yanked away, "You heard me! When Shukuen was born, you didn't give a damn about me!"

The ball pulled away, "That's not true!"

A struggle for the ball. Each side pulling, trying not to lose grip on the curvy surface, "Admit it Dad!" Tsuki yelled, standing up, "You don't give a damn about me! All you care about is Shukuen because you want him to be just like you!"

Still a struggle, but Inu-Yasha gave a harder pull, "Tsuki, I love both you and your brother! Why don't you understand that! You should appreciate that I take care of you! When I was your age, I had no one to care for me like I do to you!"

She let him have the ball. Dad shot for the basket, but there was sudden block! Tsuki had the ball. She went dribbling down the court with it (The gloves were off now!) and shot for the hoop. The ball glided in the air.

"You're a fucking hypocrite," Tsuki snarled under her breath.

The ball glided around the rim. Would it go in? Would it drop out? "What did you say to me?" Inu-Yasha growled back. His temper was starting to slowly rise.

Tsuki's temper rose. The ball was edging towards the hoop. "YOU'RE A FUCKING HYPOCRITE!" Tsuki yelled.

The ball went in. Score one point for Tsuki's team. "DON'T YOU DARE USE THAT TONE OF VOICE WITH ME!" Inu-Yasha yelled.

They were losing their identities now; the shirts that identified them from different teams began to fall off. "WHY THE HELL SHOULD I? WHY THE HELL AM I LISTENING TO HYPROCRITE?"

They were no longer playing a father-daughter game on the courts now. "I AM YOUR FATHER AND YOU ARE A CHILD!"

They were archrivals. "I'M NOT A DAMN CHILD ANYMORE! I'M A TEENAGER! WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO START TREATING ME LIKE ONE, DAD!"

A struggle over the ball. A vicious struggle. "WHEN YOU START ACTING LIKE ONE!"

Still struggling. "WHY DON'T YOU JUST GO TO HELL?!"

Inu-Yasha lost his grip on the ball. He snarled, clenching his claws, seeing that he had been outwitted by someone half his age, "FINE! YOU CAN STAY IN THERE! AS A MATTER OF FACT, YOU CAN STAY IN THERE ALL NIGHT BECAUSE YOU'RE GROUNDED FOR THREE WEEKS! AND YOU FORGET ABOUT DINNER TOO!"

Now the ball was on the court floor. Neither of them had it. Tsuki's points had dropped back to zero. It was a tie, no one had won the game. Both of them left the courtroom, without a handshake, showing good sportsmanship.


	3. Act 3

G'day, readers! I'm sorry that Act 2 was so short, but it was supposed to be a little poetic. Things might be coming a little late, considering how exams at my school are next week. But don't worry! As usual, I don't own Inu-Yasha, but I can dream…can't I? Also, about a name translation:

Akumashugi devil worship

Since this is an Inu-Yasha fic about the children of the character, guess whose son _he_ is. D

I sometimes feel sad when I do dramas because I have to cause so much emotional pain for my characters. Especially Shukuen and Tsuki, and they're my favorites.

Shukuen: '( sniff

ZeroSoul: ( Awww….poor little Shukuen! hugs Shukuen

Shukuen: )

ZeroSoul: D Now! On with the fic!

Act 3:

Dinner was eaten in silence. Shukuen sat at the table, eating quietly. After eating, he went upstairs to his room, perhaps for a little light reading. Tsuki was inside, Fukakai in her arms as she laid on her bed.

"Hey," Shukuen said, "Do you want me to sneak you something from downstairs?"

"Nah," Tsuki said, "Shut the door, will you?"

Shukuen shut the door behind him and leaned against it, "I heard you and Dad fighting. Are you…okay?"

Tsuki said, "No big deal. If I was still 10, I could bite him, but since I'm older, Mom won't let me," She looked up at Shukuen with a smile. "I make Dad regret that he never believed in spanking,"

Shukuen nodded; a little joke to lightened the mood.

Tsuki got off her bed, letting Fukakai go onto the floor. The big cat waltzed around the room and perched herself on Tsuki's desk. Tsuki glanced at the clock and then turned to the window. She pushed it open and perched on the windowsill.

"What are you doing?" Shukuen asked, walking over.

"What does it look like, moron?" Tsuki said, her voice close to a whisper, "I'm sneaking out,"

Shukuen lowered his voice as well, "But why?"

Tsuki had one leg out the window, "I have something I need to do,"

"Like what?"

Tsuki had another leg out the window, "It's a secret. You can only know if you're coming along. And for _real_; you can't chicken out,"

Shukuen folded his arms, "How long will we be gone?"

"'Til midnight probably," Tsuki answered.

"Have you been there before?"

"Like a million times,"

Shukuen sighed, "…I guess it couldn't hurt,"

Tsuki was out the window and on the vines that crept up the side of the house. Shukuen was out the room and down the vines as well. Unlike Tsuki, he didn't have claws, so he had a little difficulty holding on to the plant.

"Do as I do," Tsuki whispered, "Take it one shingle at a time,"

Shukuen nodded. He carefully went down the vines, watching Tsuki to mimic her movement perfectly. Tsuki was the first on the ground, Shukuen after her. The moon was hanging in the sky above them. As if to observe their rebellious behavior.

"Now comes the fun part," Tsuki muttered.

"The fun part? What's the fun part?" Shukuen asked.

"Getting out of here!" Tsuki said, grabbing her brother, "We have to meet Shippou by the park by 8 or he's leaving without us!"

"Okay! Hey, slow down!"

The park had once been where Kagome, Shukuen and Tsuki's, mother used to live. But after Kagome had graduated from high school, her grandfather passed away. Kagome's mother sold the old shrine to company and they knocked down the area and turned it into a park, stating that the city needed more parks. The only thing that remained of Kagome's old home was the Bone Eater's Well; considered to be a historic sites, symbolized ancient Japan.

Shukuen and Tsuki arrived only two minuets before 8. Shippou and Reichou were standing nearby the Bone Eater's Well.

"Hey," Shippou said. He glared at Shukuen, "Why'd you bring _him_ along?"

Tsuki shrugged, "Why get punished alone when my Dad finds out?"

"Yeah, I know, the bastard ratted us out to Miroku and Sango and we're grounded," Shippou muttered. He then smirked, "If they were my real parents I _might_ have listened,"

"Dude, you have like no conscience," Reichou said, stretching a little. The night air was making him cold and stiff, "Are we going or not, Shippou? You promised me you would take me to see it,"

"Do I ever break a promise to you, Reichou?" Shippou said as he approached the Bone Eater's Well. He pulled off the cover to the well.

Shukuen looked down the well and shivered, "It's so…_dark_,"

"Suck it up," Tsuki said. She climbed on the well and stood on the edge, "Just jump in. Remember, Shukuen, you can't chicken out of this one,"

Shukuen was backing up, "…no…I can't…it…"

"You heard the lady! Get going!" Shippou said. He snatched Shukuen by the collar and tossed him into the well with great ease.

Shukuen let out a scream as he tumbled down into the depths of the Bone Eater's Well.

Darkness, there was darkness everywhere around him. Shukuen couldn't tell up from down, right from left, as he seemed to float in midair. But he knew he was falling headfirst into something…he knew that he was falling and falling fast…

Shukuen landed on soft ground. He looked up around him to see the walls of the well enclosed around him, towering over his body. Shukuen just wanted to lay there on the floor. He didn't want to move in this strange place. It was so dark…so frightening…so cold…the darkness was closing around him like a blanket. He couldn't even see his hands. His heart thumped, threatening to jump out of his chest.

"Shukuen!"

….who was that?

"SHUKUEN!"

…was that Tsuki?

"SHUKUEN! GET YOUR ASS UP HERE!"

That was defiantly Tsuki.

Shukuen sat up and looked in the direction of the voice. He saw the opening at the top of the well. He saw Tsuki and Shippou looking down at him with annoyed faces. A flash of light flickered in the back of Shukuen, and he turned around to see Reichou.

Reichou extended a hand, "Come on. We've got a lot of ground to cover,"

"…ground?" Shukuen said as he took the hand. Reichou lifted him off the ground and helped him climb the vines on the side of the well. Shippou was tapping his fox foot impatiently and Tsuki had her arms folded.

"Damn it all, Shukuen!" Tsuki snarled. She turned her back to the group, "You're slowing me down! I'm going on my own!"

"Tsuki!" Shippou called as the angry teen girl stormed off, "We have to stay together! It's dangerous in Sengoku no Jidai!"

Tsuki's reply was a fierce "Fuck you!" and she was gone into the woods. Shippou was left rubbing his temples as he groaned "This is _not_ good…this is _not_ _good_…" over and over again. Reichou said nothing, but Shukuen had one question.

"Sengoku no Jidai?" Shukuen gasped. The words rasping off his tongue, "We're in _Sengoku no Jidai_? But that's…that's where Dad is from and that's where…" Shukuen shivered. "…_Uncle_ _Sesshoumaru_ lives,"

"Suck it up!" Shippou snapped, "Tsuki can take care of herself just enough to get pass some of the minor demons in this accursed forest. As for _you_…" Shippou scanned Shukuen was one eye. A skinny boy, soft and frail like his mother. Good with a bow, probably, but not for anything else except to scream "Save me! Save me!" when a demon attacks. "..you should probably stay with us and _try_ to have a little backbone,"

"Give a rest, Shippou," Reichou said, "Why are so mean to Shukuen? Tsuki's the one that got us in this situation,"

"Because!" Shippou snapped, glaring at Shukuen.

Shukuen looked down at his feet – he knew the answer. People from Sengoku no Jidai weren't as open minded about…certain things. His mother had explained it to him when his father objected to Shukuen taking ballet lessons or when Shukuen wanted a dollhouse when he was 8 or when Tsuki refused to wearing a skirt. "You have to realize, Shukuen," his mother said, "Your father and his friends come from a different...time. When things were far different than how they are today. He just has to get used to some of the...changes,"

Shukuen never got that dollhouse. Shukuen never took those ballet lessons. He never took those lessons or got the dollhouse because he knew his father would be looking down him. Tsuki wore slacks every day. She didn't care what anyone thought. She wanted them all to go hell.

Shukuen trudged through the forest behind Shippou, his head still hanging down.

Tsuki stood in the treetops overlooking the rest of the forest. She gazed in direction of the moon, which seemed to hang over the forest. She was looking for a sign from him.

There! Right below the moon, nearby a tree…a flashing light!

The light flashed three times. Tsuki understood the message, 'I am here. Come now'. She leapt from treetop to treetop until she was there. She stood on the forest floor, looking around for him. She was in a clearing now, with a small pond in front of her. A frog surface from the waters and croaked, looking for its mate.

"So you came,"

Tsuki stiffened as she felt arms wrap around her. She turned her head slightly to see it was Akumashugi – still holding his mirror in one of his hands.

"Akumashugi, don't scare me like that," Tsuki said.

"I waited all day for you," Akumashugi whispered into her ear as he kissed her neck, "I almost thought you would never come, but you did," He squeezed Tsuki around the waist. "How is it on the other side?"

"Enough about my world!" Tsuki said. She turned around and faced him. Akumashugi's ivory skin shone in the moonlight; he was an albino and had a little trouble seeing in the daytime, but he was handsome, "I just want to come here and talk with you…and get away from my father,"

"You father," Akumashugi said. He pulled Tsuki into his arms, "he seems to trouble you a lot," He rubbed his hand through Tsuki's hair. "Tell me about him,"

"He's a jerk!" Tsuki huffed, "He doesn't care about me! All he cares about is himself and Shukuen! He hates me because I'm girl, but twice the man Shukuen is! Shukuen's just a little wimp and…and…" Tears came pouring out of Tsuki's eyes.

"There, there," Akumashugi said sweetly as he kissed Tsuki gently, "I didn't meant to make you cry, I was just trying to help,"

"I know you were,"

The forest seemed to quake all of a sudden and several creatures screeched unanimously. Some birds rushed out of their nests and up towards the moon, which seemed to be a safe haven. Tsuki held onto Akumashugi.

"What's that…?" Tsuki whispered.

"Villagers," Akumashugi answered bitterly, "They have such prejudice against demons," He then smiled at Tsuki. "What if I take us somewhere…more quiet and not so out in the open?"

Tsuki laid her head at Akumashugi's chest and closed her eyes, "Take me with you,"

"As always," Akumashugi answered.

Akumashugi wrapped Tsuki up in his black and red kimono and they disappeared instantly in a wave of black mist.

"Damnit!" Shippou cursed. He sat down on the ground to pick out, yet another, thorn out of his foot.

Shippou, Shukuen, and Reichou were still walking through the woods.

"Shippou, my feet hurt," Shukuen said, "and we've been walking in circles, I can tell. Maybe we should take a break or something?"

"Stop whining!" Shippou snapped as he roughly pulled the thorn out, "We're almost there, anyways,"

"Where are we going?" Reichou asked, "You never told us,"

"I need to see the priestess Kikyou, _okay_? Kaede died a while back and Kikyou is the only priestess left alive that I can see and she lives nearby,"

"_Kikyou_…?" Shukuen asked.

"Your dad's ex-girlfriend," Shippou answered, "right before they had a falling out and she died and then she came back to life and became all morbid and creepy,"

The whole forest seemed to stir. Birds rose up from their nests and towards the clouds. Shippou stood on his feet, even though his foot throbbed a little. In the distance, they could hear people…people yelling angrily. They could see people carrying pitchforks and torches and they were running in a group in their direction.

Villagers. Angry villagers. An angry mob of villagers.

"Should we run?" Shukuen said.

"No," Shippou said, "we should see what they want first,"

The villagers seemed to encircle them. All of them glaring at Shippou, Shukuen, and Reichou with accusing eyes. There seemed to be an entire village here as all the types of villagers looked at them: young, old, men, women, rich, poor (but mostly poor).

"I knew it!" a woman spoke from the crowd, "The demon may not be here, but his helpers have come to do this business!"

"Listen, lady," Shippou said, "I don't know about you, but I am certainly _not_ a demon help,"

The mob was _not_ in a listening mood. "Capture them! Capture the demons! Bring them to the priestess! Let her take care of them!"

"Way to go, Shippou," Reichou grumbled, "My talismans won't work against humans, so we're done for,"

"I've got one more trick up my sleeve!" Shippou said, "Fox fire!"

The villagers cried out as Shippou let loose some flames from his paw.

"Where did they go? " a villager said.

"There they are!" another villager said. He pointed towards Shippou, Shukuen, and Reichou running away nearby. The villagers surrounded them again and cast a net over them. The three were helpless to escape and were dragged from the forest in direction of a village nearby a river.

"Great plan, Shippou," Reichou grumbled.

"Shut up," Shippou muttered.

_Ring, ring._

Kagome stumbled out of bed and towards the phone. Inu-Yasha curled up, taking more of the cover with him. She grabbed the phone and spoke into it, "Hello?"

"Kagome?" a voice said over the phone. Sango; it sounded like she had been up crying.

"Sango?" Kagome gasped, "What's wrong?"

"Reichou isn't home!" Sango sobbed, "And neither is Shippou! They snuck out and it's almost midnight! I'm worried about them! Are they with you?"

"Oh no…" Kagome muttered. She ran out of the bedroom, down the hallway, and opened Tsuki and Shukuen's bedroom door – both of them, gone.

"…Kagome?" Sango said over the phone.

Kagome held back tears, "Tsuki and Shukuen are gone too. I'll meet you over at your house in a few minuets. Don't be too upset, Sango,"

"I'll try," Sango said.

Kagome went back to the bedroom and flickered on the light, "Reichou and Shippou are gone!"

Inu-Yasha twitched slightly, "…so?"

Kagome pushed him out of bed, "And so are Tsuki and Shukuen! They have to be together!"

Inu-Yasha sat up, "Damn it all!"

"We're going over to Sango and Miroku, try and sort this out, try and figure out where they all go,"

"And what I'm going to do to them once I get my hands on them!"

"Let's just hope they're okay,"

'_Having children is wanting to hug them and strangle them at the same time,'_ Inu-Yasha thought.


	4. Act 4

I wonder…are my chapters too short? I don't think so. I usually don't read extremely long chapters. Maybe it's because there are not pages and I lose my place often. Oh well…I guess I'll never really know until someone tells me. People probably wonder how my characters look. Well…

Tsuki: Silver hair, puppy ears, and yellow eyes…just like Dad. : )

Shukuen: Black hair and green eyes…just like Mom. : )

Reichou: Black hair, Miroku's looks, Sango's maturity

Shippou: Pretty much the same, except he has two tails now and his hair is grown out long like Inu-Yasha

Akumashugi: Albino – red eyes, white hair, ivory skin

On with the fic! : D

Act 4:

As soon as they came to the village, it reeked death and destruction. Bodies lay randomly in their path and blood was spilled on the dirt road. Some of the huts had been destroyed by fire…or perhaps by something _else_. Shukuen, Shippou, and Reichou observed their surroundings as the villagers were dragging them as they pulled the net.

"I feel like the catch of the day," Shippou muttered.

"This is obviously some sort of net woven from a type of plant," Reichou said, "that deflects magic, like moly. We may as well go with the flow,"

The villagers had dragged them to a large hut. A man stepped in front of the doorway, "Priestess! We have the demons that have defiled our village!"

A woman stepped out of the hut. Her priestess robe was stained with blood from tending to the injured. She looked at the people in the net with slight interest, and then disdain. Calmly, she turned her back to them, "Bring them in,"

Reichou, Shukuen, and Shippou were taken out of the net and hauled inside of the hut. The villagers then left them alone with the priestess.

"What brings you back here, Shippou?" the priestess asked, "I thought you had abandoned us for a better on the other side,"

"I come back once in a while," Shippou answered.

"Shippou," Shukuen asked, "who is this woman?"

"Can't you tell?" Reichou said, staring at Shukuen, "That's Kikyo, the most powerful priestess to ever live,"

Shukuen took a good look at the priestess – he had never seen Kikyo before and she was not mentioned around the house. Kikyo, equally, took a good look back at Shukuen. Her face was hardened towards them; who would have thought such a pretty face could look so bland, so unemotional?

"You are of Inu-Yasha's blood," Kikyo said.

"…how did you know?" Shukuen asked.

"I can sense some demon blood in you," Kikyo answered, "not enough to be hanyou and not enough to full. It is mostly human, but there is a little bit there and it is dog demon,"

"My sister has more demon blood in her than me," Shukuen answered, smiling.

"Kikyo, what are you doing here?" Shippou asked.

Kikyo made face, "I am priestess, Shippou. I am doing what I am supposed to do," She then paused. "Sit on the floor, this shall be a long story,"

Shukuen, Reichou, and Shippou did as they were told.

"A few days ago, the demons in this forest slowly began to disappear," Kikyo said, "as if they were leaving. The villagers were happy that they were slowly leaving, but…something else was afoot. A little girl was in the woods with her brother. Her brother stumbled onto a cave. It was the same cave where…I had once tended Onigumo, before he became Naraku. In the cave, they found a human man, not much older than you three, consuming demons as Naraku did, except it was even faster and even more brutal.

"The girl and her brother ran to tell the villagers, but it was too late. The demon lay siege to the village. It destroyed and killed, taking no mercy, and attacked day and night. Then, for no apparent reason, it left. The demon stopped coming here and stopped attacking. The villagers returned to the cave, but found no remnants of the demon. He was gone – vanished. The villagers have been on edge since then and they contacted me. They want revenge and they're attacking anything that moves. It is dangerous for you three to be here. You should go back to the other side,"

"Not while this is going on!" Shippou said.

"I wasn't born when Naraku was around," Reichou said, "but I have heard tales of him from my parents. Could it be that…he has returned?"

"No," Kikyo answered, firmly, "I saw him die. Naraku may have deceived us before, but he is now truly dead. No, the demonic aura I sensed from the destruction in the village was something…else. Something not truly evil, but not truly good either. It was something…strange. It reeked somewhat of Naraku, but yet it reeked of something else. I am not sure. It may just be a demon with some of Naraku's powers, and yet it may not. Sesshoumaru doesn't–"

Kikyo suddenly stopped; as if she was biting her tongue.

"Sesshoumaru? My uncle?" Shukuen asked, "What does he have to do with this?"

"Nothing," Kikyo answered quickly, "He has nothing to do with anything,"

"I haven't heard from him in a while," Shippou said, "I only saw a glimpse of him hanging nearby when Kaede died,"

"He come and he goes!" Kikyo snapped suddenly. She then let out a sigh and headed towards another part of the hut, "Now if you excuse me, I have injured people to attend to,"

"'He comes and he goes'…yeah _right_," Shippou muttered.

"She really didn't want to talk about him," Reichou said.

"What do you think she meant by 'he comes and goes'?" Shukuen asked.

"What do you think it means!?" Shippou snorted, "It means that they just have sex and nothing else!"

Suddenly, a pot that had been holding water came flying into the room and collided with Shippou's head.

"Do you remember when we weren't married?"

"Yes,"

"And we used to be on the road every day looking for Shikon shards?"

"Yes,"

"Back then, did you ever think we would be out like this because of our children?"

Kagome looked at Inu-Yasha. She had been driving the car in direction of Sango and Miroku's house, "No, not really. Back then I was too worried about if I was going to live at least until tomorrow,"

Inu-Yasha said nothing. Then he finally spoke, "Kagome, am I bad father?"

"_What_?"

"Am I a bad father?"

"No! Of course not! What would make you think that way! You're a wonderful father!"

"You're just saying that,"

"No, I'm not. You're a good father. It's just that…raising children can be a little hard to manage, especially children that are unique and special as Tsuki and Shukuen,"

"But how can I expect to be a father when I barely had a family to raise me? My father and mother died when I was young, I barely remember them now. I had to fend for myself all that time. But I feel as if…I'm failing at being a good father. Tsuki won't listen to me and she lies to me so much I can't tell when she's telling the truth. Shukuen listens to me, but I always get the feeling like he's keeping something from me on purpose,"

"Give them some time. It's not easy growing up, you know,"

Tsuki felt Akumashugi's smooth hands slide up and down her neck as he passionately continued kissing her. Tsuki kissed him back, but grabbed his hand as she felt him slowly inching his fingers towards the buttons on her shirt, trying to undo them.

"No," Tsuki said as she pushed away his hand from her buttons.

"No…?" Akumashugi asked, "What's wrong?"

"I'm not ready," Tsuki said, "You know that,"

Plain and simple. He knew this, she knew this – so why had Akumashugi been so forgetful lately? Was it that he was forgetting that Tsuki didn't want to 'go all the way' with him…or was it that Akumashugi was simply blotting it out of his mind; putting thick coats of paint over the fact that Tsuki wasn't willing to give him her virginity at the moment.

"When are you going to be ready?" Akumashugi asked as he kissed her neck.

'_Why are you asking me this? You know why. You should know why. Have you forgotten about that already, Akumashugi?'_

"I don't know," Tsuki answered, "but it's not now. I just don't feel like it's a good time,"

Shippou rubbed the back of his head and glared at Kikyo as she innocently entered the room. Kikyo ignored him and directed her attention to Shukuen.

"Tell me something," Kikyo said, "how do you control the demon part of you?"

Shukuen seemed to shrink, "…what?"

"Demon blood is very potent," Kikyo answered, "A drop of it is enough to give strength to human blood. It can spread in one's body and take over completely, especially with half-demons like yourself and the sister you spoke of. So tell me, how is it possible for you to control the demon inside? Have you had some sort of training, some sort of discipline that prevents it from taking over?"

Shukuen curled up into a ball. _'Demon blood,'_ he thought gloomily. He knew about the danger of his demon blood. He knew every since he was small…ever since that fateful day on the playground in the park…

"Shukuen…?" Reichou asked.

…Shukuen was small but he remembered that day all too clear…

"_Shukuen_…?" Reichou asked.

…and he remembered his rage and he remembered…

"**_Shukuen_**?"

…and he remembered the blood spilled on the sandbox…

"SHUKUEN!"

Shukuen looked up as Reichou shook him. Shukuen was shaking all over; it looked like he had just seen a ghost.

"What's wrong with _you_?" Shippou grumbled.

Shukuen shook his head as he looked down, "…nothing…"

"Ignore him, priestess," Shippou said, "He's weird. Priestess, there's something I've wanted to talk to you about. Kaede would be a better source but…she has passed on,"

At mentioned Kaede, Kikyo stiffened. Her face hardened and she turned away to tend the fire, to hide the tears, "Be quick about it,"

"Do you know what happened…to the Jewel of the Four Souls after Naraku was defeated?"

Kikyo shook her head, "No, it is gone forever. I knew as soon as Kohaku died,"

"Kohaku…?" Reichou asked.

"Sango's brother. He would have been your uncle, had he survived," Kikyo answered. She then stood up and looked at them.

"You mean…" Shippou gasped, "…it's _destroyed_?!"

Kikyo nodded, gravely, "I heard of when Kagome split the Jewel of Four Souls into a thousand shard and I knew it would only be a matter of time. The Jewel of Four Souls is meant to never be separated like that and while the shards may have some power on their own, it is only a matter of time before the power wares off and it is dead and it becomes a piece of glass. Nothing more. Naraku had cultivated a lot of shards over time, but he knew as well that it was only a matter of time.

"You see…Naraku needed those shards for power and without it, he would be nothing. So, he had to act fast. I was not there to see the battle, but I saw Naraku die. And when he died, so did the Shikon shards and so did Kohaku; for you see, Kohaku needed those shards to stay alive. The Jewel of Four Souls is no more,"

There was an eerie silence in the hut.

"I've been having dreams," Shippou admitted, "strange dreams of a jewel just like the Jewel of Four Souls…except different. It had a different power of some sort, because…I don't know how I know this, but it wasn't forged by priestess like the Jewel of Four Souls was…but _born_,"

"_A jewel born of both darkness and light,_" Kikyo suddenly said, as if she was reciting poetry, "_A jewel of both sorrow and joy. A jewel tied and created in the blood and flesh of one. A jewel that shall begin the end,_" Kikyo paused. "I have seen visions as well of what you speak, Shippou. It is beautiful, but deadly,"

"What is it?" Shukuen asked.

"I do not know," Kikyo answered, "but I know that is dangerous to both worlds,"

Sango and Miroku lived not too far from Kagome and Inu-Yasha. The parents met in the living room. Sango's eyes were puffy and red from crying too much.

"Where do you think they would have gone?" Miroku asked.

"I don't know," Inu-Yasha answered, "There's a million different places in this accursed city,"

Sango paused, "…do you think they would have gone to Sengoku no Jidai?"

Everyone blinked.

"Go to Sengoku no Jidai?" Kagome asked, "But the Bone Eater's Well is all the way in the park and wouldn't it be impossible to go back without the Jewel of Four Souls?"

"Impossible, no," Miroku answered, "but improbable, yes," He then explained, "Shippou is from Sengoku no Jidai, but he lives here. Sango and I are from Sengoku no Jidai, but we live here and Reichou was born here. Kagome, you are from here, but Inu-Yasha is from Sengoku no Jidai. It might be that people from Sengoku no Jidai who have experience in both worlds can move back and forth. Shukuen and Tsuki, for example, are of both worlds, and can call either place home. The same goes for Shippou and Reichou,"

"But how do we know they're _there_?" Sango pointed out.

"None of the children are the ones to go partying," Kagome said, "So they have to 'hang out' somewhere where nobody will find them strange looking. Sengoku no Jidai is the perfect place,"

"Maybe we should split up," Inu-Yasha suggested, "Miroku and I can go to Sengoku no Jidai and Sango and Kagome can go look around town in the car,"

"We would be able to cover more ground," Kagome sighed, "and if we find any of the kids we can drag them back home,"

"But if we're in two separate worlds, we won't be able to contact each other," Sango said.

"We'll just have to risk it then," Inu-Yasha answered, "Sengoku no Jidai should be less dangerous since Naraku is gone,"

"He's right," Miroku said, "let's go our separate ways now,"


	5. Act 5

Just finished watching Matrix Trilogy…want to own special edition of Return of the King…want Legolas action figure…want Wolf's Rain vol. 1 DVD…want Sesshoumaru plush doll from Media play…but enough about my needs! I must continue the fic! I want to thank those that reviewed my story. It made me happy. If people don't review, I think people don't like it. : ' ( But people did and that makes me oh so joyous! does the happy dance

Also, about the phrase "Akuryo taisen", it's supposed to be Japanese for "evil begone" and is used by priests and priestesses. Though, I'm not sure what Miroku actually says in the anime, but he's still a monk and he needs some phrase and "Akuryo taisen" sounds cool.

But it seems you people out there like it, so on with the drama…the action…the adventure…that is my fic!!!

Act 5:

Kikyo looked at Shippou, Shukuen, and Reichou and then she sat down on the wooden floor across from them.

"Let me tell you a story," Kikyo said, "You all know of yin and yang; the darkness and the light that balance out the universe. With magical things, it is the same properties; without evil, there is no good. Before the Jewel of Four Souls, a jewel meant to bring peace and happiness, could be created, a talisman of evil had to be made. This talisman was like the Jewel of Four Souls, but it was it's opposite; it's brother. This was the Jewel of Four Angels,"

"Sounds harmless," Shippou said.

"Don't joke about this, Shippou. It is very serious," Kikyo said. Shippou was silent again and Kikyo spoke again, "The Jewel of Four Angels has enough power to bring about the apocalypse. Each angel represents what shall end the world – famine, pestilence, war, and death. Unlike the Jewel of Four Souls, which was forged from goodness and purity of a soul, the Jewel of Four Angels is made from flesh and blood, a source of sin and deceit.

"But when the priestess who created the Jewel of Four Souls was lost, so was the Jewel of Four Angels. It was lost for many years. Even I do not know what has happened to it, but it knows that the Jewel of Four Souls, its brother, is gone now and once it resurfaces, it will be stronger than anything else in this world,"

"…it?" Reichou asked.

"Unlike the Jewel of Four Souls, the Jewel of Four Angels has a will of it's own. It has a mind and it has it's own plans for it's own selfish gain. It cares not for mortals or immortals, so as long as it gets what it desires: power and the destruction of all worlds at it's hands,"

"_A jewel born of both darkness and light. A jewel of both sorrow and joy. A jewel tied and created in the blood and flesh of one. A jewel that shall begin the end,_" Shukuen recited. He then looked at Kikyo, "Those lines, priestess, where did you get them from…?"

"I created them," Kikyo said, "when I saw my vision of the jewel,"

"But it says that it is bound to the blood and flesh of someone," Shukuen pointed out, "Who is that one?"

"There is a legend of the Jewel of Four Angels," Kikyo said, "It can only be born when the descendants of true good and true evil meet to form one being which shall be bound with the power of the Jewel of Four Angels, which the jewel shall use as a host body,"

Shippou gagged, "So what you say, priestess, is that a baby is going to born with the Jewel of Four Angels _using_ its body? That's _sick_!"

"Yes," Kikyo said, "it is very disgusting indeed. That is why I have tried to–"

Kikyo suddenly stopped talking. A silence filled the room.

"Preiste–" Reichou asked.

"_Ssh!_" Kikyo said. She crept carefully to the corner of the room and pulled out her bow and arrow. She then whispered to Reichou, Shippou, and Shukuen, "Get down on the floor. When I give the signal, you three run,"

"What? Why?" Shippou asked.

"Shippou, this is no time to argue," Kikyo snapped, "Just do as I say. Get down on the floor and when I give the signal, run," Kikyo strung her bow and aimed at the ceiling. Her body was tense – she was waiting for something.

Shukuen lay on the wooden floor. He coughed as some dust went up his nose. Shippou still didn't see the point of getting on the floor, but Shukuen and Reichou had obeyed. Kikyo was aimed the ceiling, still.

"What's going on–" Shippou began.

He didn't finished. At that moment, something ripped the roof off of the hut…something huge. A roar ripped through the air and eight red eyes were glaring down at them. Shippou could only stare back at the eyes.

A feeling of nostalgia came over Inu-Yasha as Miroku and him went to park and found the Bone Eater's Well. The cover had been tossed off.

Inu-Yasha sniffed the air, "Shippou and Reichou have been here," He then added miserably, "So has Shukuen and Tsuki. Their scent is all over the well,"

"So they _did_ go to Sengoku no Jidai," Miroku sighed, "I suppose we'll have to go and get them, drag them back home, and then yell at them,"

"The job of a parent is never done," Inu-Yasha concluded.

Inu-Yasha and Miroku jumped the well – no use for stalling.

"It's getting late," Tsuki whispered.

"Don't tell me you're leaving me _now_," Akumashugi answered. He was still kissing her neck, "It seems you just got here,"

"I like to leave before dawn," Tsuki said, "so that the police doesn't catch me or anything. You know how people are. 'Have your teenagers locked in their rooms after sunset, parents. You never know what boys might be after them'. Great advice my principal gave at the PTO meeting my Mom made me go to,"

"But do you have to leave _now_?" Akumashugi asked.

Tsuki smiled and gave him a gentle kiss, "Yes, I have to,"

"Then let me give you something," Akumashugi said.

"Okay,"

Akumashugi then began to kiss and suck at Tsuki's neck. Tsuki suddenly felt a pang of pain from her neck and she moved away from Akumashugi.

"What was _that_?" Tsuki muttered as she rubbed her neck.

"A gift," Akumashugi answered, smiling, "from you to me,"

Tsuki gave him a kiss good-bye, still wondering what Akumashugi's gift was. She stepped outside of the hut and looked around. The area was located in the woods and the hut was obscured from above view by the trees and vines that were enclosed around it. It would take her a while, but she would be able to get back to the village and the Bone Eater's Well within an hour or so.

Tsuki leapt up into the air and towards the trees…

Kikyo let her arrow fly loose. It went whistling into the air and stabbed the beast in one of its legs. The arrow remained there, like a stiffened hair, as the beast roared and began to spit out a greenish fluid. The fluid hissed as it touched the hut floors and ceilings, eating away at anything that was there – acid! Kikyo let loose another arrow, but this one too stuck to the monster like hair. The monster took no true notice of the arrow and began to rip the hut apart. It was looking for something…

"My sacred arrows…don't work?" Kikyo gasped as she withdrew her bow. She then looked at Shippou, Shukuen, and Reichou (who were frozen with fear), "_Run_! I can use some of my powers to divert this thing the village!"

Shippou and Reichou were up, but Shukuen was stuck to the floor. He was too busy shaking out of fear to move.

"Would you _get_ _up_?" Shippou said as he pulled at Shukuen's arm.

No reply. Shukuen was too frightened to move or speak. His entire body had paralyzed itself.

The creature roared again as it looked at Shukuen with red eyes; oozing with bloodlust. It reached out two of its hairy legs towards Shukuen – ready to grab the young man, or rip him apart.

The forest had seemed to grow a little thin, or so it had to Inu-Yasha. It seemed like it was getting smaller and smaller and was loosing it's special touch. Miroku and him climbed out of the Bone Eater's Well and observed the area.

"Do you smell them, Inu-Yasha?" Miroku asked.

Inu-Yasha sniffed the air. He then stiffened, "Yes. Shukuen, Tsuki, Shippou, Reichou – they were all here," He sniffed the air again. "Tsuki left the group and went someone else. Shukuen, Shippou, and Reichou are all together," He then paused. "…Kikyo is here…."

The faint sound of roaring filled the air.

"What is that…?" Miroku said, "A demon? But doesn't it sense Kikyo's powers…?"

Inu-Yasha shook his head, "No, no this is different…this doesn't have the demonic sense,"

Miroku paused, "I don't sense a demonic aura either," He then turned to Inu-Yasha. "We should go investigate anyways,"

"Right," Inu-Yasha said, "Shippou, Shukuen, and Reichou's scent is coming from that village,"

When they arrived at the village, it was filled with panic and terror. Men, women, and children were yelling and screaming in all directions as they ran from the village and into the woods nearby. What appeared to be a giant spider was attacking a hut.

"What in the hells is _that_?" Inu-Yasha asked.

"I am not sure," Miroku replied, "There is no demonic aura around it, but it seems to be some sort of foreign monster,"

"Whatever it is," Inu-Yasha said as he clicked his claws, "It's destroying the village and Shukuen is nearby!"

Inu-Yasha leapt into the air and attacked the creature.

Tsuki was up on the treetops – she was close to home now. The wind was wafting through her long silver hair, carrying the scent of something…strange. It wasn't like a demonic aura, but it was some sort of presence…a very large presence that reeked of evil. It was coming from the village, where the Bone Eater's Well was.

The wind was carrying the scent of fresh human blood and of her father…and of Miroku…

Tsuki knew as soon as she had sensed her father, there would be trouble.

Shukuen was ready to die. His heart was ready to slip up his throat and onto the ground and his eyes were squinted closed. The creature let out a roar of pain and when Shukuen realized that he wasn't dead; he opened his eyes and saw a familiar figure on top of the creature, slashing at it with his claws.

Inu-Yasha. His father.

"Dad?!" Shukuen gasped.

Inu-Yasha looked at Shukuen. His gaze was a fatherly one – concern filled and one of those 'you are in some much trouble when we get home' glares. Shukuen heart was pounding as his father slashed through one of the creature's leg, causing the leg to crash to the ground. The creature roared in pain, as ooze came from the wound.

"Akuryo taisen!"

Shippou and Reichou gulped as some very familiar sutras appeared on the creature, taking no effect. Miroku appeared a few feet away, clenching his teeth in frustration on seeing that his sutras were taking no effect.

Inu-Yasha took one swipe at the creature's neck and the head lopped off. It slowly stopped moving and it then melted away into a pool of black and red ooze. An ooze stained Inu-Yasha approached Shukuen.

"Shukuen," Inu-Yasha said, "what do you think you're doing here and where's your sister?"

"I don't know," Shukuen confessed. He felt like crying but held back the tears, "she just went off and…and…"

"Are you trying to tell me that you let your sister go out in the woods _all alone_?!"

Shukuen was shaking, "…I…I didn't want to…she just…"

"Inu-Yasha," Kikyo said. She walked toward him, "it's been a long time,"

"Yes, it has…" Inu-Yasha answered, "…Kikyo, I know we haven't kept in contact since Kaede…passed…but we don't have to be complete strangers from each other,"

"No," Kikyo said, "we should be. You have a wife and children now that I have been given a second chance at life, as I am to fulfill my duties as a priestess which I could not to do due to Naraku's interference,"

Inu-Yasha was about to open his mouth when he stopped. He then turned to the, now dilapidated, door of the hut with an angry look in his eyes. He looked at Shukuen, "Come on. We need to get home,"

"We should leave too," Miroku said, "now that I have my boys,"

Shippou and Reichou were nearby, both feeling a little meek after being yelled at. The five of them left Kikyo in the hut, heading in the direction of the Bone Eater's Well.

Tsuki had decided to avoid the village and just go straight to the Bone Eater's Well. If she could somehow sneak home and say she hadn't left, but she was in the attic all the time, she wouldn't have to deal with her father. As soon as Tsuki was near the well, the scent of her father and Miroku came to her. Tsuki did her best to keep silent and removed the cover of the well. She carefully got into the well, one leg at a time…

"_Going_ somewhere, Tsuki?"

Tsuki looked up from the ground. She had one foot in the well now. Her father was a foot away from her. Next to him was Shukuen, looking ready to cry, an angry Miroku, and a meek looking Shippou and Reichou. Inu-Yasha had had his glare of 'you are in even _more_ trouble than Shukuen when you get home'.

Tsuki looked away. Avoid eye contact, eye contact would make you feel meek – Tsuki had learned this after her father and her had had their first argument. "I was going home," Tsuki said with a stuck-up attitude. The attitude _always_ irritated her father.

Indeed, the attitude did irritate Inu-Yasha, "So are we,"

All of them went down the well.

It was about midnight, close to one in the morning, when all the yelling was done at the Higurashi home. The punishment had been delivered onto Shukuen and Tsuki: grounded for two weeks (though for Tsuki, it was four weeks by now), no television, no computer, no radio, no after school clubs, no telephone, no mall, no allowance, no radio, no CD player, no movies, no video games, no arcade, no comic books, no hanging out, no going out – just come home, do homework, and possibly read a book.

"So I'm technically grounded for a month," Tsuki said, "Don't you think that's a little unfair?"

"Unfair?!" Inu-Yasha snorted, "If I wasn't concerned about the other teenagers with you, I would have sent you to military school!"

"Oh, like that's going to stop me," Tsuki answered as she rolled her eyes. She turned away and headed for the living room door, "I'll be up in my room,"

As Tsuki turned her back, Inu-Yasha glanced at Tsuki's neck, "Tsuki…what's that on your neck?"

Tsuki clasped a hand over her neck, "Nothing,"

"Let me see," Kagome said.

"Mom, it's nothing!" Tsuki said as she began to back away.

Kagome pulled away Tsuki's hand from her neck and she glanced at the mark, "Tsuki, you got a _hickey_?"

"…no…" Tsuki said. She knew what a hickey was, but she had never had one, until tonight. She had heard about it from some of the kids at school: an American trend, the lip marks on the neck, the proud girls, the enraged parents…something teenagers would do.

"You…got…a…_WHAT_?" Inu-Yasha yelled.

"Gotta go!" Tsuki said as she ran out of the living room, up the stairs, and into the bedroom. After a few minuets of awkward silence, Shukuen went to his room as well.

Inu-Yasha wore an expression of concern, but Kagome was thrilled, "Oh, Inu-Yasha! _That's_ what this is all about! Little Tsuki must have a _boyfriend_! No wonder she's been sneaking out!"

"…_boyfriend_?" Inu-Yasha asked.

"Yes! Who else would have given her that?"

"Are you trying telling me that a boy…"

"…yes,"

"…a boy is putting his hands…"

"…yes…"

"…and _lips_…"

"…yes…"

"…_on_ my little girl?!"

Kagome shrugged, "Yes, I would have to say so,"

Inu-Yasha went for the Tetsaiga, which was now placed over the fireplace like a family heirloom, "I'LL KILL HIM!"


	6. Act 6

I just joined as a member. I'm **alchemistgirl zero** – the slightly insane alchemist in training who enjoys making things go BOOM! > : ) I bid thee farewell and I bid this fic starting!

Act 6:

"Inu-Yasha, no!" Kagome said as she grabbed his arm, "It's _good_ that Tsuki has a boyfriend!"

"What are you talking about?" Inu-Yasha said, "I don't want some boy feeling up Tsuki as he pleases!"

"Oh, relax," Kagome answered, "Tsuki is a big girl that can take care of herself," She could see the anger in Inu-Yasha's face. "I'll make you a deal – I'll talk to Tsuki and you talk to Shukuen,"

"What's wrong with Shukuen?"

Kagome made a small smile, "I'm afraid he has a lot to tell you,"

Inu-Yasha nodded, "I suppose we could do that,"

As Inu-Yasha headed out of the room, Kagome spoke, "Inu-Yasha, remember, you love your son no matter who is,"

Inu-Yasha looked at Kagome quizzically, "Of course of love Shukuen. Why wouldn't I?"

"Just to help you remember,"

Reichou was staring up at the ceiling. Downstairs, he could hear Shippou arguing with Miroku. Reichou had learned as a child that it was better just to keep quiet than yell. Yelling made everything worse. Of course, Shippou never believed such a thing. He was a true wild child –a smoking, drinking, flirting, delinquent with a spirit as untamable as the fox in him. A few minuets later, Reichou could hear Shippou stomping up the stairs, growling and grumbling.

"Damn it all!" Shippou yelled as he entered the room, slamming the door behind him, "That damn monk thinks he can just rule me like some sort of human child! I'm a Kitsune, damn it! I deserve better than this!"

Reichou sat up and turned on the light as he looked at Shippou. Shippou was rustling through a pile of dirty clothes on trash on his side of the room. Reichou and Shippou each had their side of the room. Reichou's side was nice and neat, Shippou's side looked like a disaster area.

Shippou pulled out a pack of cigarettes and started to smoke, "I just should run away and go back to the other world! I'd get some respect there! I'd get a lot of things…like chicks and cash! I wouldn't have to depend on some freakin' allowance or some damn approval from some damn monk who think he's father. No, my father was a Kitsune and he was–" Shippou glared at Reichou, who had begun to cough from the cigarette smoke, "What are _you_ looking at?"

"Nothing," Reichou answered, "Didn't Dad tell you _not_ to smoke?"

"He doesn't know I'm doing it," Shippou answered, "…_yet_,"

"Does he also not know about the fact you have detention?" Reichou asked.

Shippou took the cigarette out of his mouth, "I don't know…does he know that you're gay?"

"I'm not gay!" Reichou said. He then paused, "…I just…I'm not sure if I like girls yet…"

"So you're gay," Shippou said, "I don't give a damn,"

"But Dad will," Reichou answered, "Do you know how _religious_ Dad is? He'll throw me out of the house!"

"A big softie like Miroku? Yeah right. I bet if you come out of the closet to him, he won't do anything. I mean, what's he going to do…_hit_ you?"

Reichou sighed as he curled up into a tiny ball, "So you don't hate me even if I'm…undecided?"

Shippou shrugged, "Whatever,"

"Then why do you hate Shukuen?"

Shippou made a face, "Because he's a whiny little bitch-face. I mean, the son of someone like Inu-Yasha shouldn't be like him. They should be more like,"

"Tsuki?"

Shippou glared at Reichou, "Yeah, Tsuki,"

"You love her…don't you?"

"What?"

"You love Tsuki…don't you, Shippou?"

Shippou paused. He took a few puffs of the cigarette and then sighed, "Tsuki and me have been friends for the longest. I was always her little playmate when we were kids. If she wanted to go play hide and seek, I was the first one to be with her. Red Rover? Of course. Ms. Mary Mack? Very un-macho, but willing. Double Dutch? Hell yeah. I got pretty good too…"

Shippou paused again.

"'Anything for you, Tsuki.' That's what I used to say," Shippou continued after a few minuets," 'Anything for you, Tsuki'. A walk to the playground? 'Anything for you, Tsuki'. A candy bar that she can't afford? 'Anything for you, Tsuki'. A trip to the moon? 'Anything for you, Tsuki'. Stand up to the school bully? 'Anything for you, Tsuki'."

Shippou paused again.

"Anything for you, Tsuki…_anything_ for you…" Shippou muttered the words over and over again like a CD cassette player, "But we got older. I liked Tsuki, but to her…I'll always be that little Kitsune friend. Nothing else. I'll never be anything else to her,"

"Shippou, I'm sorry," Reichou said as he patted Shippou on the back. He forced a smile, "You're an attractive Kitsune and there's a thousand more girls in Tokyo and a million more in Japan,"

"But none of them are Tsuki," Shippou sighed.

Tsuki and been taken by Kagome into the living room and Inu-Yasha was upstairs in Shukuen and Tsuki's bedroom with Shukuen. Shukuen was curled in a little defensive ball, as if he was preparing for someone to hit him.

"Your mother told me you had something to say to me," Inu-Yasha said.

Shukuen looked up at him, "…Mom said that?"

Inu-Yasha nodded, "Yes,"

Shukuen looked at his feet and was silent.

Inu-Yasha put his arm around his son, "I think I know what this is all about. You're having _girl_ trouble, aren't you?"

"Not exactly…" Shukuen muttered.

Inu-Yasha continued, "When I was your age, I went through the same thing. I was always after some sort of girl. I remember one time–"

"…Dad," Shukuen began.

"–I met this girl that–"

"…_Dad_,"

"–didn't like demons, so I–"

"…**_Dad_**,"

"–tried to hide my ears with a piece of–"

"DAD!"

Inu-Yasha stopped and looked at Shukuen. Shukuen bit his upper lip. _'Alright. Here we go. Just go ahead and say it. Just get it out there. You can do this, Shukuen,' _

"What is it, Shukuen?" Inu-Yasha asked.

"Dad," Shukuen said, "I'm gay,"

Inu-Yasha froze. Time seemed to freeze in that few minuets before he could reply, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, Dad," Shukuen confessed, "I like other boys. I don't like girls, I like guys. I have a boyfriend. His name is Yuki. He goes to my school. He's a senior," Shukuen paused. "I was scared to tell you, Dad, because I thought you wouldn't understand. Do you understand, Dad? Do you still love me?"

Inu-Yasha paused. An awkward silence filled the room. Shukuen knew he would cry himself to sleep if his father hated him for what he was.

Finally, Inu-Yasha smiled frailly, "You are what you are, son," He patted Shukuen on the head and left the room.

Tears poured out of Shukuen's eyes – he saw the hurt and disappointment in his father's eyes, not the frail little smile. Shukuen curled up into a ball even more to muffle his sobs.

Downstairs, Kagome was talking to Tsuki with a rarely excitement.

"So, what's this name?" Kagome asked.

Tsuki made a face, "Whose name?"

"Your boyfriend of course!" Kagome asked. Tsuki didn't respond and Kagome just smiled, "Oh, Tsuki, don't be embarrassed! When I was your age, I had a few boyfriends before I met your father. I dated this boy in my class named Hojo, who really health food, and then this bad boy who called himself Aku, and then the wolf demon Koga and _then_ your father!"

Tsuki looked at her mother with suspicious eyes, "His name is Akumashugi,"

"Where does he live?"

Tsuki was quiet again.

"Oh, that's okay, honey! All in good time! But just remember honey," Kagome leaned in. "sometime boys can get a little frisky and you have to teach them a lesson. When I was with your father, I sometimes had to 'osuwari' him on every date,"

"…_eww_..." Tsuki muttered.

"So, remember, if you don't like what he's doing, just kick him in the balls!"

"Won't that hurt him?"

"A little, but he'll recover," Kagome got up the couch. "One of these days, Tsuki, I want to see this boyfriend of yours and see what he's like,"

Tsuki said nothing. Kagome didn't mind and went merrily up the stairs. Tsuki still remained quiet and went up the stairs to her room.

Kikyo looked over the remains of the village and it's people – both in bad shape. She tended to the wounds of the people on the outside and the inside. They thought they were cursed to a doomed existence in this time of turmoil and it was her job as the priestess to make them forget this idea. It had to be about midnight now; the villagers all asleep, crammed into the huts that remained standing. Tomorrow they would start building again, chopping down more trees to make more huts.

She looked through the window of her hut as she sat nearby the fireplace. Full moon tonight. Shippou's words from some days ago ran in her head, _"What do you think it means?! It means that they just have sex and nothing else!" _

Will he come tonight?

Kikyo shook her head and she tended the fire – it was foolish to think that Sesshoumaru and her were in a true relationship. They never would be. No, not in this time, not in this village. Sesshoumaru hated humans, that was true. So why would he want to have relations with her? Why would he want to be with a woman like her – a woman who had died 50 years ago and was brought back by the magic of a twisted demon?

'But…' 

Kikyo stared in the fires. She put a pot of tea over the flames and let it boil.

'…_but why did he…?'_

Kikyo remembered that day. She remembered the night after that day and she remembered the passion they shared for one single night. For just one night…

'…_why did he…?'_

…but when that night of passion was over, he was gone and Kikyo was alone again to be the priestess of the village.

'…_but why…?'_

But then he came back again for another night, but when that night was over he was gone. No good-byes, just the feeling of abandonment and the feeling that she had been used. He was using her.

'…_then why do I…?'_

But she hadn't done anything to stop those nights. She hadn't lifted up a hand in protest or shot the arrow. She accepted it. She accepted the passion and accepted the love of that night. She accepted the loss and the abandonment the morning after. She accepted it all.

The tea was starting to boil as Kikyo remembered the day that started it all: the day that Kaede died.

_It was only a day after Naraku had died. Kagome had returned to the other world. Inu-Yasha remained in his world. Sango and Miroku were to leave and return to Sango's old village. Shippou had gone with them. Kirara had been set free to roam the mountains with her new family. Kikyo had returned to her old village to see Kaede. Her younger sister, no longer young, but older, far older than Kikyo, who had not been ravaged by time._

_It was raining. _

_But when Kikyo arrived there in the village – she had heard of how the priestess Kaede had fallen ill. Kikyo ran to Kaede's hut, only to find that her sister was on her deathbed. Kaede was dying. Her body was too frail to survive in this harsh time. Kikyo tried to help: she healed, she fed, she nurtured…but it was not enough. 'My time has come,' Kaede had said to Kikyo as she refused food, 'my sister. I am content. I am ready to pass on into the next life,' _

_Those were Kaede's last words. She died right there and then. Kikyo could say nothing as she looked at her dead younger sister. That should have been her to die. Kikyo should have died – not Kaede. Kaede was the younger sister, she shouldn't have died. She shouldn't…it was wrong. It was all wrong. _

_Everyone gathered at the funeral pyre, where Kaede was to be burned. Everyone was there – Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Shippou, Miroku, Sango, and Kikyo. Kikyo said nothing to anyone during the funeral; she was as silent as the death that had taken her sister. She took Kaede's ashes in silence and scattered them over the river nearby the village in silence. _

_That day, everyone left their world and went to the next. 'There is nothing here for us in this world,' Inu-Yasha had stated after the funeral, 'and this is no place to raise children or to have a family that will not be torn apart by war or bloodshed. And I realize this now after this adventure with Naraku; this is period of death is not for us, for any of us,' _

_It was that day Miroku and Sango took in Shippou. It was that day Inu-Yasha and Kagome promised they would remain together forever. It was that day they all left Kikyo in this world and went to the next. _

_Kikyo remained, alone. _

_But at night, Kikyo had gone out to visit the river where she had spread her sister's ashes to pay respects. She couldn't sleep. There at the river was Rin. She had seen the little girl before, around Sesshoumaru all the time, but this Rin was no longer a girl, but was a little older now. She was taking a drink out of the river when she saw Kikyo. 'You're the ghost priestess!' Rin said as she jumped at seeing Kikyo. Kikyo had tried to tell Rin to calm down and not to be scared, but Rin screamed when Kikyo came near. _

_Sesshoumaru came, as swift as lightning. He had sword in hand, but when he saw Kikyo he put it away. Then, Sesshoumaru ushered Rin away (who quickly ran). 'What business do you have here, demon?' Kikyo had said. 'Nothing that concerns you,' Sesshoumaru had answered, 'but I do wonder what the undead priestess Kikyo is doing here at her old home,' Kikyo led Sesshoumaru to her hut and had told him of her sister's death. _

'_I know of how you feel,' Sesshoumaru had answered. _

'_You know nothing of how I feel!' Kikyo had snapped angrily. _

'_But I do,' Sesshoumaru had explained, 'a companion of mine, Jaken, died some days ago. He was far older than I and I expected it to happen. He didn't want me to resurrect him either. "My time of death has come, Sesshoumaru-sama," Jaken had said to me that day, "and I wish to be reborn as something else. To be given a second chance." So, I let him die,'_

_It is amazing how pain can bring people together. Kikyo and Sesshoumaru shared a night of passion, for several unknown reasons. Perhaps it was a way to keep the pain of loss away or perhaps it was because they were both lonely and had never truly had a love in a long time. Kikyo didn't care for the reason, all she cared for was those moments. _

_Kikyo got up the morning to find Sesshoumaru gone. She was all alone, again. Kikyo could only stay silent as she dressed herself and went on to do the duties of a priestess alone…_

The tea had boiled over. Kikyo took the pot off the fire, but suddenly she didn't want the tea. She pushed it away bitterly, as bitter as the tea leaves in it and went towards her bedroom. A night's sleep would make her feel better.

Inu-Yasha was sitting up in bed when Kagome entered, overjoyed. She changed into her nightgown and laid down in bed next to Inu-Yasha.

"Did you know about Shukuen?" Inu-Yasha asked her.

Kagome sighed as she looked at her husband, "I sort of figured it out, but he never told me. I thought it would be best if he told you himself,"

Inu-Yasha nodded, "How did it go with Tsuki?"

Kagome clapped her hands and smiled, "Oh _wonderful_! She has a little boyfriend! She might even bring him by. We had a nice little mother-daughter chat and we talked about boyfriends and everything!"

"What's his name?" Inu-Yasha asked.

Kagome looked at him, "I'm not telling you,"

"Why?"

"I know you, Inu-Yasha. As soon as you hear that a boy has an interest in Tsuki, you're read to hurt him!"

"What's wrong with that?"

"A lot of things!" Kagome then sighed. "I want you to be open minded about Tsuki having a boyfriend. It might make her a little more…_feminine_ if she has one. So, if she brings her boyfriend to the house, just smile, say hello, and nothing else,"

"I don't like it,"

"You're being overprotective of her. Tsuki is growing up and boys will start to look at her,"

Inu-Yasha grumbled in reply, "Okay, I won't hurt him if I see him, but I still don't like it,"

"That's all I ask,"

"Good,"

Kagome turned off the light.


	7. Act 7

Okay, the story so far for those who have not been with us:

- Shukuen is gay and has a boyfriend named Yuki. Shukuen is also being bullied by some kids at school. He just told his father, Inu-Yasha, that he was gay. Inu-Yasha accepts Shukuen's individuality, but is a little hurt. Reichou is Sango and Miroku's son, who suspects he might be gay. Shippou, adopted by Sango and Miroku, is a delinquent who enjoys drinking and smoking. Tsuki has a boyfriend named Akumashugi who may not appear who he is. Kagome is thrilled to have her tomboyish daughter have a boyfriend, but Inu-Yasha is aloof of the idea. Kikyo is now the village priestess since Kaede has died who is having casual sex with Sesshoumaru, but wonders if Sesshoumaru and her are in a true relationship. Meanwhile, Inu-Yasha wonders if he's a bad father.

: ) This is turning into a real soap opera! Also, a note: sake is Japanese rice wine, not that you should drink, but it's something you should know. On with the soap opera, err…fic!

Act 7:

Inu-Yasha had gone over to Miroku and Sango's house the next day while Shukuen and Tsuki were at school. When he arrived at the house, Sango had gone out shopping and Reichou and Shippou were also at school. Miroku let him inside of the house and severed up sake.

"What's wrong, Inu-Yasha?" Miroku asked, "You look a little miserable,"

"I guess its Shukuen," Inu-Yasha sighed. He then explained, "He told me last night he was gay. I guess I'm having some trouble accepting the idea that my son dates other boys. Then Tsuki has this boyfriend of hers that I don't like either," He then sighed again and took some sake. "I think my life is going to hell, Miroku. Do you think…I'm a bad father?"

Miroku looked at Inu-Yasha quizzically, "What? No, you're not a bad father. You know, it's not easy raising kids," He took a sip of the sake. "It's hell having to manage kids, especially when they're teenagers and they get all rebellious and such. Sometimes, you have to seem like a tyrant to get them to behave,"

"But what Shukuen?" Inu-Yasha asked, "I don't know what to do with him now. I've never met…one of those people before in my _life_ until now,"

"You're just going to have to accept it," Miroku answered, "Teenagers in this time have to feel some sort of acceptance from their parents. If they don't, it just makes it worse. You're not a bad father, compared to me," He sighed. "I wish I could do something with Shippou. He's getting worse every day it seems. So far, he's been expelled from two schools,"

"That reminds me of Tsuki. I wonder if it's my fault she's like this. I remember when she was born…I wasn't exactly as happy as I should have been because she a girl. I wanted a son, but I paid attention to her as much as I could. But when Shukuen was born, I was so happy and content that I had a son…someone to be just like me. I started to ignore Tsuki because I was so busy being with my son. I remember Tsuki getting so upset at Shukuen and she would try to hurt him because she wanted me. She didn't want to share me with anyone. She was very dangerous when angry because she has more demon in her than anything else,"

"It's never too late in life or books to rewrite. Maybe you could start all over with Tsuki? Try and talk to her; get her to forgive and forget,"

"No, it's too late. She doesn't listen to a word I say,"

The phone rang. Miroku picked it up, "Hello? Yes? Yes," He paused. "_WHAT_?!" Another pause. "I'll be over there soon. Just keep him there. Thank you," He then hung up the phone and went for the car keys.

"What happened?" Inu-Yasha asked.

"Shippou, again," Miroku grumbled, "From what I heard form the school nurse, a student found him smoking in the boy's locker room. Then he threw up and passed out. The nurse says that he's a total mess. I have to go down and talk to the school principal. They're considering getting him expelled,"

Reichou and Shukuen ran into the office. The nurse was sitting at her desk outside of the door to her office, filing her nails. Both of them had frightened looks on their face. "Is Shippou here? Is he okay?" Reichou asked.

The nurse looked at Reichou, "You're Shippou's family, right?"

"I'm his brother," Reichou said.

"And I'm a family friend," Shukuen answered.

"Good. Misery loves company," the nurse answered. She showed them inside of the office. Shippou was lying on his side. His hair was a mess, his nose was bleeding, his eyes red and watery, and slime all over the front of his short. He was gasping for air.

"_Shippou!_" Reichou gasped. He ran over to Shippou's side.

"What happened to you?" Shukuen asked.

Shippou looked at them and coughed, "…drugged…kids in class…drink...something in it…morning…smoked…sick…"

"Don't speak," Reichou answered, "You're not making any sense,"

Shippou forced a single word out of his mouth: "…Kentaro…"

Shukuen's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. Reichou still tried to decipher the meaning of the word, but Shukuen knew all too well. He understood was Shippou was saying. He ran out of the office, down the hallway, and to the boy's bathroom – where bullies roamed. Reichou was left to stay by Shippou's side.

Shukuen flung the door open to the bathroom. Kentaro, Miki, and Takeo were chatting. When they saw Shukuen enter, they stopped talking.

"Well, well, well," Kentaro said, "the bitch returns," He cracked his knuckles. "I didn't have you scheduled for a beating until after school, but I think we can make an exception,"

"You did that Shippou!" Shukuen yelled, "You drugged his drink! You made him sick!"

Miki shrugged off the accusations, "So? We were the ones who gave him the cigarettes and the beer in the first place. As my mother would put, 'You lie down with dogs, you're bound to get fleas,' He had it coming to him anyways,"

"What did you do to him?!"

"A special little drug from a some country. Grows from the poppy plant. Very potent, though I don't expect it to do such a number on Shippou," He shrugged. "Oh well,"

Shukuen clenched his teeth.

"Oh well?! How can you just say that?! Shippou will probably never be the same after this! He might even die from it!"

"Your point is what?" Takeo asked. He then snickered, "We saw Shippou's ears. He's not even human, is he? He's probably some sort of alien or freak of nature. He doesn't deserve to live anyways. I even saw your father once and your sister. They have ears like him too. You're probably not even human yourself. You're probably an oni who devoured the flesh of a boy that looked like the real Shukuen,"

"I am the real Shukuen!" Shukuen yelled.

"It's a real shame too about the fact you're not human, especially your sister," Kentaro sighed. He then stepped up to Shukuen and leaned towards his ear, "because she looks like a real slut and I wouldn't mind screwing her,"

Claws raked across Kentaro's face. Kentaro stumbled backwards. He felt warm blood dribble down his face. He looked around to see what had caught him off guard – then he saw Shukuen. Shukuen's hair was silver, he had dog-ears on top of his head, his eyes yellow, and he had grown claws. He growled at Kentaro and leapt at him.

"Shukuen!" Kentaro gasped. He rolled over onto his side so that Shukuen would miss, "Shukuen, old buddy old pal! I was just kidding about that whole thing with sister! I mean, she's really not my type at all! I mean, who likes tomboys anyways?"

Shukuen didn't answer as he slashed Kentaro's arm, sending more blood. Miki and Takeo were paralyzed in fear as Shukuen continued the attack. He started to rip and shred at Kentaro's body – sending fresh blood onto the walls and floor. Finally, Miki and Takeo came to their senses: they ran out of the bathroom and as far away as they could from Shukuen.

Miki and Takeo kept on running until they bumped into someone – Tsuki. Tsuki looked down at the two with disgust, "What are you two morons doing without your beloved leader?"

Miki's face was white with horror, "Tsuki! You've got to calm your brother down! He'll kill Kentaro at this rate!"

"Yeah right," Tsuki muttered, "Shukuen's as harmless as a fly,"

"He's not kidding!" Takeo said, "There's blood in the boy's bathroom!"

Tsuki paused. Then she ran in direction of the boy's bathroom with Miki and Takeo at her heels. She forced open the door and the first thing she saw was blood. The second thing she saw was a black haired Shukuen. He was sitting in the corner on the floor, curled up into a little ball and crying. Kentaro was opposite him; he had slash wounds on his legs and arms. Miki and Takeo ran over to Kentaro.

"Dude, are you okay?" Takeo asked.

"Are you kidding me?" Kentaro gasped. He then forced a smile, "My old man's done worse to me. I'll live,"

"Freaks!" Miki said at Tsuki and Shukuen as he helped Kentaro out of the bathroom, "You'll get what's coming to you! The government should keep your freaks locked up where you belong! You'll see! I'll tell my father and he's a policeman! He'll make sure you get what's coming to you!"

Tsuki ignored him as she sat next to Shukuen, "Shukuen…Shukuen, what happened?"

Shukuen was sobbing, "Tsuki! I lost…I lost control…the demon…he took over! I just got so angry…and the…the last thing I remembered…I remember Kentaro pleading for his life…he was saying a prayer…just like the other one…just like…"

Tsuki held her brother, "It's okay, Shukuen. It's not your fault,"

"Yes, it is!" Shukuen sobbed, "It is my fault! It's all my fault! It's…it's just like…like when I was in second grade,"

"Second grade?"

"Yes, you were at a different school then. But, when I was in second grade, it was Valentine's Day and I gave a Valentine to a boy. A boy I liked…his name was…Ken. But when Ken found the Valentine, he called me a freak. He made fun of me. From that day on, he always teased me. It was horrible. I cried so much, but I never told Mom or Dad or anyone about. I hated going to school. Then, one day, Ken got a group of his friends and it was after school and they started to…hit me. I was in so much pain, but then…Ken spit on me and called me 'fag'.

"I lost it. I got angry and I lost control of the demon inside of me. I attacked Ken and I remember the blood…the blood was sprinkling from him like a fountain…it was everywhere. I only calmed down when Ken was lying there on the ground, still bleeding, barely alive. I ran away from there and went home and I cried even more, because I thought he was dead. But that wasn't what really bothered me. There were no adults to see it, so they figured all the other kids were telling tales about a demon. They fought Ken had injured himself or something like that. They blamed it on something else…a school bully who was in the area.

"But it wasn't him! It was me! I was the one that hurt Ken! Not the bully! It was me! It was me! It was me and no one could figure it out!" Shukuen started to cry even more. "…it was me…it was me…it was me…it was me…"

Tsuki sighed as she squeezed Shukuen even tighter; she didn't know what she could say about the bloodshed, but she knew that she had to comfort her younger brother in anyway possible.

"You have to understand, sir," the principal stated, "we have a no-tolerance policy for what your son has done. In the past year, he has be disobedient, rude, caught smoking, caught drinking, and now we suspect he maybe taking drugs,"

Miroku nodded. He was the principal's office with Sango. It was after school. The school nurse still had Shippou in her office and his condition wasn't improving. Reichou, Tsuki, and Shukuen were in there with him, keeping his company. An ambulance had been called for Kentaro as soon as the nurse saw him and he was off in the hospital. Tsuki had cleaned up Shukuen (and some of the blood on the boy's bathroom floor and walls using paper towels) and given him her gym shirt and pants to wear.

"My son, Reichou," Miroku said, "had told me that Shippou may have drugged by one of the students at this school, named Miki. I admit, Shippou is not perfect, but he is not the one to dabble in drugs,"

"There is the idea of that, sir. But you must understand that after such an incident to add onto all the other incidents that your son has caused, I have to say that this is no place for Shippou," the principal concluded, "I have looked at his past school records and I see a pattern. His grades are good, but he has behavior issues. Have you considered that Shippou may have a disorder some sort?"

"Are you saying that Shippou's crazy?" Sango asked.

"Not crazy, per se. Just a little unwell," the principal said. He then explained, "It might be that Shippou just has a chemical imbalance in him and it makes him act this way. What I suggest is that if you wish to keep Shippou in school, you should try and get him tested for a disorder. His grades will start to slip if his behavior continues like this, but if he has a disorder, then we can put aside some special classes for him to help him with these issues. Maybe get some medication for him to keep him normal or take a psychologist,"

"How would we get him tested?" Miroku asked.

"Oh very simple. He would come in early on a non-school day, like Sunday, and then we would have him perform some tasks to see how his skills are when it comes down to focus, cooperation, teamwork, and reasoning. Then by grading to see how he does in these categories, a psychologi-st can decipher what is wrong,"

"I think it's good idea," Sango admitted.

"_What_…?" Miroku asked.

Sango sighed, "Shippou is a unique boy and I think he's having trouble adjusting. The city might be affecting him. I want him to adjust and be like everyone else, but there's so many obstacles in the way. I think we should do it,"

Miroku sighed, "I suppose…"

"Good," the principal said, "we'll have him tested this Sunday at 6 o' clock,"

Shippou's face was plastered with sweat. Reichou felt his forehead and made a face as he looked at Shukuen, "He's burning up," At hearing this, Tsuki got up and headed for the door.

"Tsuki? Where are you going?" Shukuen asked.

"I can't take this anymore!" Tsuki said, "I've got to get some air!"

"But, Tsuki–" Shukuen began. Tsuki was already gone. Shukuen sighed as he looked at Reichou, "Are you okay? It must be really hard for you to see Shippou like this,"

"I'm fine," Reichou answered. A few minuets of silence went between Shukuen and him. Finally, Reichou spoke, "Shukuen…how did you know you were first gay?"

Shukuen looked at his feet, "I always thought I was different, besides the demon in me. I didn't realize what 'gay' was until I was in middle school and I met a lesbian. She explained it all to me and that's when I knew I was 'gay'. I had always liked boys. My first crush was a boy," He then looked at Reichou. "Why do you want to know?"

Reichou paused. He now looked at his feet as well, "…I like you…"

Shukuen blinked, "…what?"

"I like, Shukuen," Reichou admitted. His cheeks began to flush, "I like you a lot. I don't know why, but it's something about you that makes me kind of…feel happy,"

Shukuen smiled a little, but he didn't look entirely happy, "That's great, Reichou, but I…"

Shukuen didn't finish his sentence. Reichou pressed his lips to his mouth, covering the words. Shukuen's brain raced for an answer – this was wrong! He had a Yuki! He was supposed to be kissing Yuki, not Reichou! But why did it feel so right…so complete? Shukuen soon found himself kissing Reichou back. Their tongues met and Shukuen felt so hot and warm as they continued kissing each other.

"Reichou,"

Reichou looked at the doorway – Miroku was standing there. He took his lips away from Shukuen and his face drained of all color. Miroku's eyes were dangerous and angry slits. Shukuen looked at Miroku and his breath seemed to be caught in his throat. Reichou didn't know what to say – he felt so scared and frightened all of a sudden that he could hardly breathe.

"Get your Shippou and let's go home," Miroku said; his voice could have iced the entire room. Reichou meekly nodded and helped Shippou off of the bed. He then went to the door and left with Miroku. Shukuen was left alone in the room, feeling deserted.

Tsuki was back at the park again. She just needed some time alone; just to get away from it all. Not that many people were in the park today – perfect. She headed towards the Bone Eater's Well, lifted the lid and disappeared down the hole.

Kikyo sighed as she swept dust from the front of her hut door. The villagers were rebuilding today and most of them were off in the forest chopping down trees and gathering wood. She had been alone the night before – Sesshoumaru hadn't come and she had convinced herself that that didn't bother her at all. She then saw in the distance at the edge of the woods – a scrawny girl, just reaching 13.

Rin.

'_And where there's Rin, there's Sesshoumaru,'_ Kikyo thought. She approached Rin and looked at the girl. She was shaking; still scared of Kikyo.

"Do you know to speak?" Kikyo asked Rin.

Rin meekly nodded.

"Then answer me this," Kikyo said, "why are you frightened of me?"

"Because you're a ghost," Rin answered quietly, "You may look like a lady, but you're a ghost. I can see through your skin. You have the souls of others inside of you and your body is eating them…"

Kikyo paused, "How do you–"

"Rin," a firm voice, "go to the river,"

Rin looked behind her to see Sesshoumaru. She ran away and off in the woods and in the blink of an eye the girl was gone. Sesshoumaru approached Kikyo.

"That girl," Kikyo said, "she has the second sight, does she not?"

"Yes," Sesshoumaru answered, "she just started using it, but it keeps her up all night. She's afraid to sleep because she keeps seeing the ghosts of the dead and she tells that they try to take her soul,"

"Don't demons like you," Kikyo said as her tone grew icy and she turned her back to Sesshoumaru, "prefer to do your mischief in the darkness?"

"Am I supposed to run and hide from the sun?" Sesshoumaru answered, "I only came because this area has one of my half-brother's spawn's scent all around it. It's more demonic than human,"

"What is your real reason for coming here, Sesshoumaru?" Kikyo snapped, "Just to have your way with me like you do every few weeks?!"

"On the contrary, I came here because I wished to talk to about something that you may find very interesting,"

"What could you possible have that would interest me?"

"Some days ago, I saw into a young man, almost blooming into adulthood, who was an albino. He was eating the flesh of some minor demons. He only looked at me once and he spoke. 'What are you doing here?' I thought he had been some sort of fairy until I heard that voice – it was a very familiar voice that sounded just as deep and as taint with evil as it. I ran to attack him, but he disappeared in a puff of smoke,"

"You come here to tell me of some fairy boy you saw?"

"Not some fairy boy, a full blooded demon – who had the voice of Naraku and his power to absorb the flesh of other demons to make himself stronger,"

Kikyo froze and her eye's widened. She then took a breath of air to calm herself, "Come to the hut. We have much to talk about,"

Reichou let out a cry of pain as he stumbled onto the floor. He held his hand to his eye and gingerly touched it – it was swelling. He could feel the skin around it starting to turn black. He shook off the shock of the blow and looked up at his father with a horror in his eyes. His father went for another blow…

"Dad!" Reichou yelled, "Stop! _Please_! I'm sorry! It's just who I am! You would always accept me no matter who or what I was! Dad! _Stop it!_"

"No son of mine is going to a fag!" his father answered, "I could understand that _spawn_ of Inu-Yasha and Kagome being one of them, but not you! You're a full blood _human_, Reichou! You're not one of those _things_!" His eyes grew to dangerous slits. "You're the only son I have and I will not let you embarrass me like this!"

"But, Dad–" Reichou began.

"It's wrong, Reichou! You know and I know it!" his father yelled, "Boys aren't supposed to be together! You can't truly _love_ another boy! It's just one of your stupid phases!"

Reichou looked down at the ground, "But, Dad–"

"From now on, I don't want you hanging around Shukuen or even talking to him or I swear to God I'll throw you out of the house and onto the street! You'll be homeless and starve to death!"

Reichou gulped, "Yes…yes, father…"

His father snorted as he turned to the door. He was still fuming with anger. "You're a good son, Reichou. It's not truly all your fault. It's Shukuen's mostly. He's the one making you think you like other boys. He's the one that's causing all this trouble," his father said.

The door shut. His father went into the hallway. His mother was waiting. Reichou could hear them talking.

"I heard some yelling. Is everything okay?" his mother asked.

"Everything's fine," his father answered, "We're transfer Reichou to another school. I don't want him…around any of those bullies that made Shippou that way. I think a Catholic school would be best,"

Reichou didn't cry – no, he felt like throwing up and he felt like punching himself.

Tsuki looked around the woods. She had wandered for at least an hour now and she was back where Akumashugi and her had met some nights ago. She looked at her reflection in the lake and sighed. Everything was getting so crazy now; she needed somewhere to go and clear her head – to get away from the hustle and bustle of the Tokyo city.

In the water of the lake, she could see someone leaning over her. Tsuki spun around and saw it was Akumashugi: he had snuck up on her again.

"How many times have I told you not scare me like that?" Tsuki muttered.

"As many times as I say 'I love you'," Akumashugi sweetly answered. He kissed Tsuki on the cheek, "What's the matter? You usually don't come during the daytime,"

Tsuki sighed and she held onto Akumashugi, "There's…there's too much going on. I just need to stay here awhile. I just need to unwind. You'll let me stay here with you, right Akumashugi?"

Akumashugi smiled, "There is always room for one more in my hut,"

Tsuki held on even tighter and tears came out of her eyes, "I love you,"

Akumashugi kissed her on the lips, "And I truly love you,"

They disappeared into a puff of smoke.


	8. Act 8

Many are possibly wondering how long 'Moon and Destiny' is going to be. Well, I must announce that the end is near! Yes, go ahead and cry. The chapter after this shall be the peak of the story and the rest shall play itself out. I must add, I feel sorry that I had to pick on Reichou, Shippou, and Shukuen during the last chapter. Poor guys. It's not that I'm being sexist or anything, but their problems are the most important and moving the story.

Now, on with the fic!

Act 8:

It was some hours after school. Shukuen had come home without Tsuki and his parents were worried sick over her. Shukuen could only nod, still feeling sick from the incident with Kentaro, and went to the family room. He turned on the TV and found the news.

_A very strange incident occurred in a high school today, _said a reporter, _some sort of animal seemingly mauled a young man. The only witnesses were two of the young man's friends, who claim some sort of 'demon' attacked him. One of the young men was also found with trace amounts of marijuana in his system. Police are currently investigating the young m– _

Shukuen turned off the TV, his heart pounding in his chest and he headed for the stairs. His father stopped him, "Shukuen, do you know where your sister might be?"

Shukuen shook his head, "No. She just kind of left after she saw Shippou at school,"

"Tell me," his father whispered, "is she at her boyfriend's house? Your mother might know where he lives, but she's not telling me,"

"INU-YASHA!" Kagome yelled from the kitchen.

"We were just talking!" Inu-Yasha answered quickly.

"Stop trying to get Shukuen to tell you about Tsuki's boyfriend!" Kagome said, "I told you, you're not going to find out until Tsuki herself tells you!"

Shukuen ran up the stairs and to his bedroom while his parents were talking. He sat down on his bed and looked up at the ceiling. So many things were going through his mind at the time. Shippou. Kentaro. Reichou. Tsuki. Reichou's kiss. Miroku's entrance. Miki's drug. News. Demon control. Shippou's broken speech. Kentaro's blood.

So many things, so many things rolling at the surface of his brain; bothering him, annoying him, calling out to him to be examined, explained, and picked apart. But Shukuen didn't want to be bothered with such things. He just wanted to lie there. He just wanted to sleep. He just wanted to pull over the cover of his blanket over his body and be shielded from the problems going all around him.

So Shukuen pulled the cover of his bed over him and he pretended it was a true shield and that all his problems bounced off it. But they didn't. They kept on coming.

Dusk was settling on the village and the villagers were growing weary of rebuilding. Kikyo started a fire: it would be dark soon. Sesshoumaru sat in the corner of the room next to a sleeping Rin. She had entered some time ago, had curled up on the floor, and had fallen asleep like a cat.

"You never told me," Kikyo said, "why you keep that girl with you,"

"I do not know myself," Sesshoumaru said, "I just knew that she was the only human who had shown me some kindness and I suppose I appreciated such things then. She was only a servant to me then. But I suppose over time things change, and now she calls me father because she doesn't know of anything else to call me after these years. But there are some things I won't be able to help her with in her coming years," He looked Kikyo. "Rin needs a woman talk to,"

"I am no mother," Kikyo answered, "the girl is frightened of me," She the stopped tending the fire and sat on the floor. "Now tell me more of this demon boy you saw,"

"I fear he maybe a relation to Naraku," Sesshoumaru said, "his face and voice was of Naraku's, but he had some other features of something else as well. If he is an incarnation, he must have something else put into him,"

"Naraku has no incarnations left," Kikyo said, "they all died as soon as he did – Kanna, Kagura…_all_ of them died. They were parasites without their host,"

"Then if that is true," Sesshoumaru answered, "he must a blood relative,"

"A _blood_ relative?" Kikyo gasped, "Are you implying that demon maybe his _son_? What woman would lay with such a foul creature?"

"Naraku has the ability to change form. He may have taken on the shape of a mortal man and persuaded a woman into it,"

"…or raped," Kikyo added bitterly, "Such demons would attempt things like that for women they cannot have,"

"Whoever he is, he has the ability to mask his scent like Naraku and he may as well put up barriers. I sense in this village a strange presence and an area that cannot be identified. When the wind comes over this village, there is a scent missing of part of it, as if it disappeared. I heard also that this village was attacked and that someone found a demon in what used to be Onigumo's cave. Could it be that the son returns to where his father was created? It was here that Onigumo died and Naraku was born,"

Kikyo took a deep breath, "Or something else…" She then muttered under her breath. "_A jewel born of both darkness and light. A jewel of both sorrow and joy. A jewel tied and created in the blood and flesh of one. A jewel that shall begin the end,_" She then looked at Sesshoumaru. "When the child of darkness and the child of light come to be one, so shall the Jewel of Four Angels be born,"

"The child of darkness," Sesshoumaru said, "If that is to mean the child of Naraku, then who could be the child of light,"

"I fear the worst now," Kikyo said, "the prophecy is slowly coming true. We have to stop it, or both worlds will be destroyed by the Jewel of Four Angels,"

"I've never heard of such a jewel," Sesshoumaru said.

"It is a long story and we have little time," Kikyo said, "We must somehow truly find this demon you saw and see if he really is the son of Naraku!" She then sighed. "But we cannot prove such a thing. It would be impossible,"

Sesshoumaru got up and walked over to Kikyo. He then sat down in front of her. He leaned in close and whispered, "Nothing is impossible for a priestess like you, Kikyo,"

Kikyo felt his claws on his breasts, but she accepted the touching along with what else was coming as Sesshoumaru and her began to kiss.

The full moon was crawling into the sky, bit by bit. Tsuki looked at the moon through the window as she laid down on the bed nearby the fireplace. There was something about the full moon that always made her excited and jumpy. Akumashugi was in the other room, taking out some clothes for her. He entered the room with a smile on his face.

"So, how long do you plan on staying?" Akumashugi asked.

"Maybe for a night," Tsuki said, "I just need a break,"

"We all do," Akumashugi said. He crawled into bed with Tsuki and ran his fingers through her hair, "The moonlight looks beautiful on you. You look like a goddess,"

"A dog goddess," Tsuki grumbled, "Did you forget about my ears?"

"They're the cutest ears I've ever seen," Akumashugi answered. He nibbled at Tsuki's ears and she winced a little as he began to kiss her neck, "and you're the cutest girl I've ever seen," He stroked Tsuki's breasts softly.

Usually, Tsuki would have pushed Akumashugi's hand away as soon as he began to touch her there, but not tonight. Tonight, she just wanted to kiss him and hold him and have him…have him…

Tsuki took a deep breath as Akumashugi started to undo her shirt.

"Akumashugi…" Tsuki began.

"…yes?" Akumashugi answered as he removed her shirt.

"…I'm ready…" Tsuki answered.

Akumashugi looked at her curiously, "What do you mean?"

Tsuki smiled at him and undid her bra, "I mean, I'm ready to have sex with you,"

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," Tsuki wriggled out of her pants.

"You're not just teasing me, right?"

Tsuki answered by taking off her panties and Akumashugi just smiled as he kissed her and they fell onto the bed.

Shukuen woke to a rapping at the window. He shifted from under his covers and looked around the room. The rapping continued to come at the window. He slid away from the bed and to the window, pushing away the curtain. Down below the window was Reichou. He was pelting rocks at Shukuen's window. Shukuen forced open the window.

"Reichou, what are doing?" Shukuen asked. He then looked at Reichou even closer, "What's wrong with your eye?"

Reichou covered his eye, "I…I fell. Shukuen, let me in. I need a place to stay for a while, hideout, y'know,"

"Reichou, what's this all about?" Shukuen asked.

"I just need a place to hide, _okay_?" Reichou said, "I just need to hide for a little while and that's it. I'll explain once I get inside,"

Shukuen nodded. he ran downstairs and opened the front door. Reichou stepped in; shivering. Everything was frosted over outside and he wasn't even wearing a sweater: just a T-shirt and some pants. It was late and Shukuen knew his parents had gone to sleep by now, so he carefully led Reichou down to the basement.

"There's an old bed down here," Shukuen said to Reichou. Reichou settled on the dusty mattress, "What's going on, Reichou?"

Reichou looked as if he had seen a ghost, "My Dad doesn't want me to see you anymore,"

"…what?"

"He says that boys can't be together. He says that I can't even talk to you. He's even transferring me to another school!" Reichou looked closed to tears. "He says you're evil and that you're making me think I like boys. He says it's because of the demon in you, but I'm fully human and there's no excuse for me, he says. He says that if I keep on talking to you, he'll toss me out of the house,"

"Did he give you that black eye?"

Reichou paused. "…yes…" he said quietly.

"Reichou, why don't you tell your mother or somebody?" Shukuen said, "I can't hide you here forever, you know,"

"Don't you think I know that?!" Reichou snapped. He then calmed down a little, relaxed his muscles and laid down onto the broken mattress, "I just need to get away from my Dad. Hide for a little while. Keep him away from me. Give us some time apart. All I need is a few days,"

Shukuen paused. "Okay…I'll keep you here, but you have to keep quiet,"

"Okay," Reichou said.

"Do you need anything?" Shukuen asked, "Like food or something?"

"No, I'm good," Reichou answered, "Thanks for asking,"

Shukuen then went up the stairs, leaving Reichou alone in the darkness and dust of the basement.

"Sesshoumaru," Kikyo began.

Sesshoumaru stopped kissing her neck and he looked at her curiously, "What is it?"

"Sesshoumaru," Kikyo began, "do I mean anything to you? I mean, do you love me or do you just love my body? I mean, these few weeks have been great but I can't help but wonder if you truly love me," She then looked deep into his eyes. "If you love me, wouldn't you want to stay with me and not just come and go?"

Sesshoumaru paused, "You remember my half-brother, don't you? A full blood human and a full blood demon cannot be together. We are from two different worlds. I, from a world of hell and blood, you from a world of earth and life.

Kikyo pushed him away bitterly, "So why don't you _leave_?!"

"Kikyo, I–"

"I knew you never loved me! You're just using me!"

"I didn't say that I didn't love you, it's just that–"

"GET OUT!"

Sesshoumaru remained silent. He then silently dressed himself, roused Rin from her sleep, and left Kikyo alone in the hut with the dying fire.

Tsuki felt a soft kiss on her cheek. She rolled over to see Akumashugi lying in bed next to her. She had thought that it was all some sort of dream was happened last night brought up on by her hormones. She felt warm sunshine on her naked body and she glanced at the window to see that dawn was happening.

"Good morning," Akumashugi whispered to her.

"Good morning to you too," Tsuki answered with a smile.

"You were wonderful last night," Akumashugi said, smiling back. He kissed her again, "It's so strange. It's like I'm seeing the real you for the first time, like there's a whole new type of intimacy with you now,"

"Maybe it's because we've seen each other naked," Tsuki laughed. She then stepped out of bed, "I better go. Mom and Dad are probably worried. I usually don't stay away from home this long,"

"What? Why are you going so soon?" Akumashugi asked. He wrapped his arms around Tsuki, "Why don't you stay just a little bit longer?"

"I should go see my family and see how Shippou's doing," Tsuki answered. She then kissed Akumashugi on the cheek, "I'll be back soon enough,"

Akumashugi kissed her again, "Then let me come with you,"

Tsuki made a face, "Come home at 6 o' clock in the morning with a _guy_? My Dad will flip out! Don't think my Dad's maniac or anything," She sighed. "but he's a little overprotective. When I was eleven on Valentine's Day, a boy from my school came to our house and gave me this bag of candy hearts and my Dad chased him halfway down the street with his Tetsaiga and called him lecher!"

Akumashugi continued the subject, "But I would like to meet your parents,"

Tsuki sighed, "I don't think it's a good idea. My Mom's already hyper from finding out about you. You appearing would send her into overdrive. I think we should wait a while, okay? At least until she calms down,"

Akumashugi smiled bitterly and he kissed Tsuki on the cheek, "As you wish,"

Time had flown quickly and it was already Saturday. Shukuen had gotten dressed and was heading out the door for school when Tsuki came sneaking through the door. Shukuen stood at the top of the stairs as he watched his older sister come through the front door, which was strange because Tsuki would've normally snuck through the window had it been nighttime. In the daytime, she would have drawn a lot of attention to herself. Shukuen also saw his father enter the room.

"Coming home after a long night, eh?" his father said, "Where have you been Tsuki? Your mother and I were worried about you,"

Tsuki shrugged and smiled, "I just needed to clear my head,"

Shukuen raised an eyebrow: when did Tsuki just shrug and smile around Dad? She was acting very strange today.

"You realize that you're not making the fact you're grounded for almost a month even better, right?" his father asked.

Tsuki shrugged again and nodded, "Yeah, I know. I was just in the park and I just lost track of time. I'm sorry, Dad,"

Some was defiantly wrong now…since when did Tsuki apologize for _anything_? It was as if nothing could get Tsuki angry or down now. Shukuen stared at his sister from the staircase, trying to figure out what was wrong with her. His father was equally puzzled and just left the room, attempting to make patterns out of Tsuki's chaotic and abnormal behavior. Shukuen observed as Tsuki skipped up the stairs and went into their room. She flopped down on her bed with a girlish sigh of happiness.

"Tsuki…" Shukuen began, "…are you okay?"

Tsuki sat up and smiled, "Of course I'm okay! I'm superb!" She picked up Fukakai, who was sleeping on the floor, and hugged the cat. "Everything is right in the world!"

"Why are you so…_happy_?" Shukuen asked.

Tsuki smiled, still holding Fukakai, "That's my little secret,"

Tsuki's good mood continued throughout the day – going to school, at school, during classes, during break, after classes, after school, and heading home. Everyone around Tsuki were also puzzled at the sudden increase of joy in her mood. However, when night fell, Tsuki's mood turned sour again.

"DAMN IT!"

Shukuen looked up from the living room and towards the bathroom. Tsuki came from the bathroom, looking pissed off as ever and teeth clenched in frustration. Tsuki's hair was no longer silver – it was black. She no longer had claws, she had regular fingers. Her eyes were no longer yellow, but brown.

Tsuki was human. She would be human for 7 days.

Shukuen knew the rules when Tsuki was like this: no sudden movements or words, be careful about what you say and what you watch on TV, no loud noises, no yelling or screaming, and keep a very neutral tone. All you had to do was stay calm around her. You had to stay calm around Tsuki or all hell would break loose. And whatever you do, no matter how funny it is, no matter how bad you want to make someone laugh…no jokes about her period.

Tsuki sat down next to Shukuen. Shukuen surrendered the remote control to Tsuki. Tsuki happily turned the channel.


	9. Act 9

Now, for those of you who don't know what Tsuki is going through at the current moment…let's just say she's not very 'pleasant' right now.

Tsuki: Shutup and get on with the stupid story before Irip your friggin head off!!!

Um…yeah. So, as the grumpy Tsuki said, let's just get on the fic. Forward, my fans!

Act 9:

Someone was throwing up in the bathroom. Shukuen stirred away to the sound of groaning and grunting. he got out of bed and turned towards the bathroom. The door was half cracked open. He saw Tsuki with her head in the toilet. She was throwing up into it and crying simultaneously. Shukuen carefully opened the door.

"Tsuki…?" Shukuen asked .

"Go away!" Tsuki coughed.

Shukuen remained. He locked the door behind him and approached Tsuki. Tsuki flushed the toilet and looked at Shukuen. Shukuen patted his sister gently on the back, "Tsuki, what's wrong? It's got to be 2 in the morning,"

"Don't tell Mom or Dad," Tsuki sputtered. She wiped slime from her mouth and moved some inches away from the toilet and leaned against the bathroom wall, "You have to promise me, Shukuen, not to tell them about this,"

"What is it?" Shukuen asked.

"_Promise_ _me_!" Tsuki gasped.

"I promise, I promise," Shukuen said, "Now what's wrong, Tsuki?"

Tsuki coughed, "A lot, Shukuen, a lot's wrong. I'm supposed to be having my period, but I'm not bleeding. My body even reverted to human to tell me that I'm supposed to be having it, but I'm not. I've been feeling hungry and for the last three days I've been getting weird cravings, like right now I want a taco with chocolate and sardines on top with raw steak. I've been feeling sleep and I've been throwing up. Then I keep getting these pounding headaches like crazy and I feel so…tender, like around my breasts,"

Shukuen remember hearing about all these things in health class: one of the symptoms of pregnancy. He took a deep breath and looked deep into Tsuki's eyes. She was frightened and wanted to know what was happening to her.

Tsuki said it before he could:

"Shukuen…am I pregnant?"

Shukuen shook his head, "No, you can't be, Tsuki! It's probably just because of your period or something like that! For you to have these kinds of reactions because of pregnancy, you would have to wait for weeks and it's only been a day!"

Tsuki shook her head, "But…but what if my pregnancy is speeding up because of demon blood? Because of Aku–" She stopped and her eyes widened. "Oh my God,"

"What is it?"

Tsuki looked at Shukuen, "You hear d about Mom saying I have a boyfriend, right? Well, his name is Akumashugi and I had sex with him last night,"

"…_what_?"

"I was just so scared for Shippou and I need comfort and the full moon was out and I just felt so happy and to be there with him…so we did and that's the only guy I've ever slept with. If I'm pregnant, that would main that Akumashugi would have to be the father,"

Shukuen took several deep breaths, "But we don't know if you're pregnant. We a pregnancy tester to truly see if you are,"

Tsuki nodded, "You're right. But how do we get one? They won't sell one to either of us,"

"Mom has some of her old pregnancy testers in the medicine cabinet!" Shukuen said, "I found them when I was getting my toothpaste when I was 10, remember? I wanted to know what they were. Mom always keeps them around just in case. You know how easily embarrassed she gets about those kind of things, so she always orders them over the internet and they get delivered,"

Shukuen went for the medicine cabinet above the sink and opened it. All sorts of things were inside: Pepto Bismal, children's aspirin, regular aspirin, and other drugs. Shukuen found a rectangular box. He pulled out the pregnancy tester: a long tube. Shukuen read the instructions as Tsuki glanced at the tester.

"It looks so weird," Tsuki said, "Are you sure it's still good?"

"The expiration date says it's good until 2070," Shukuen answered.

"Will this work for me?" Tsuki asked, "I'm not fully human,"

"It should," Shukuen answered as he handed her the tester, "It takes at least an hour or so the tell if you're pregnant or not. One end of it should glow blue if you're pregnant and red if you're not,"

"Let's hope red," Tsuki muttered.

Sango was in tears again, seeing that Reichou was gone from the house just like before. Miroku tried to calm her down, but it wasn't working. Sango angrily pushed him away; she wanted to left alone in her grief. So, Miroku had to take Shippou down to the school alone to get tested. Miroku had to wait outside of an office as Shippou was inside with a psychologist and the school principal, being asked all sorts of questions and Shippou giving them all sorts of answers.

Reichou sat on the musty mattress as he stared up at the cobweb filled ceiling of the basement. He was uneasy on the mattress, slapping away spiders as they crawled nearby him. So many things were in the basement: a doll with no eyes, a bicycle with no wheels, a set of prayer beads missing half the necessary amount, and a deck of tarot cards missing half the cards. In every taped up and dusty box there was some relic of from years long past: family albums, Tsuki's baby toys, Shukuen's baby toys, Tsuki and Shukuen's cribs, and other things that they didn't use. Also, Reichou found a faded old picture.

It was a picture of Inu-Yasha and Kagome in the hospital. Kagome was cradling an infant Tsuki, whose eyes were half open and had the tiniest amount of white hair. Inu-Yasha was observing his first born, a little girl, with curious eyes.

Reichou sighed as he remembered his own family: dysfunctional, but he loved them still. He was sure his mother was worried sick over his disappearance. Reichou searched for a piece of paper. He found one, dusty and discarded underneath the mattress along with an old fountain pen. The pen smudged a little and it was almost out of ink, but it would do. Reichou quickly scribbled a note onto the paper: _Shukuen, thank you for letting me stay here. I'm going back home now. Thank you, Reichou. _After staring at the small paper for a little while, Reichou finally added something at the end: _P.S. I love you_.

Reichou crept carefully up the stairs and creaked open the basement door. Nobody was up yet – good. Reichou left the note out of the way on the kitchen table and went through the front door and back home.

"I'm afraid to say," the physiatrist said to Miroku, "that Shippou does have some sort of mental unbalance," He flipped through his clipboard notes. "I have diagnosed it as being a disruptive kind of disorder, which is very awkward since Shippou is past childhood and this is a childhood type of disorder,"

'_Not for a demon,'_ Miroku mentally added. The physiatrist and him were standing outside of the office door. Shippou was still inside of the office with the principal. Miroku then spoke up, "What kind of disorder is it?"

"ODD," the physiatrist answered, "_Oppositional defiant disorder_. From what I see, Shippou is displaying a persistent pattern of general defiance, disobedience, and hostility towards authority figures such as teachers, parents, and adults. For all of his school records, there has been persistent fighting, arguing, and he has been recorded as being touchy or easily annoyed, and is spiteful towards authority figures. He loses his temper very easily, deliberately refuses to comply with adults or anyone in authority, and is very stubborn as well. I estimate that he has had this for a long time now, but it is coming out more and more often,"

'_No wonder,'_ Miroku mentally added, _'when Shippou was younger, he didn't truly have a good role model. His parents were killed and every adult that pretty much came by tried to kill him. I guess I should expect some consequences from all of that,' _Miroku then spoke up, "What can we do about it?"

"There are no true drugs to give for ODD," the physiatrist, "but I can supply lithium and methylphenidate to stop him from being so aggressive. We could also use carbamazepine, but that has multiple side effects. Then there is clonidine, but that causes some side effects with the muscles. What I recommend if you're not willing to give him medication is to monitor him closely, try taking him out of school, letting him remain in the house for a little while, and try to convince him the world isn't against him. He's a little afraid and disoriented right now, the worst part of the stage,"

"We could do that," Miroku sighed, "Can I go in and see him?"

"Yes, but he maybe a little uneasy at the moment,"

"I'll take my chances,"

Miroku entered the office. Shippou was shivering on a bench. He was holding himself, as if it was -18 degrees inside of the office. Miroku walked over to Shippou, "It's time to go,"

"Mi…miro…ku…" Shippou gasped. His teeth were chattering, "…miro…ku…I'm so…cold…"

"Shippou…?" Miroku said. Miroku touched Shippou's skin – it was ice cold. He helped Shippou stand, "Come on, Shippou, we have to get you to a doctor or something and then–"

Shippou didn't hear. His eyes had rolled up into the back of his head.

"Shippou?" Miroku called. No answer. "_Shippou_?" No answer. "SHIPPOU!"

No answer.

Shukuen was waiting outside of the bathroom door, slumped against the wall, waiting for Tsuki to come out. The door finally creaked open and Tsuki entered. Tsuki was holding the pregnancy tester in one and with the other hand she was wiping tears away.

Tsuki was crying.

"Tsuki, what's wrong?" Shukuen asked.

Tsuki didn't answer. She continued crying. Finally, Tsuki dropped the pregnancy tester and ran to their room. Shukuen was confused by what was going on.

Then he looked at the pregnancy tester.

It was a dark blue.

The leaves were rattling, starting to turn from a lush green to a crisp orange, yellow, or red. Autumn was near, Akumashugi could feel it. He sat underneath his favorite tree and marveled at his mirror – the pentacle mirror, used by Kanna sometime before he was ever born. It was little gift he had found one day when he was smaller; it had been floating by in the river. Quietly, Akumashugi commanded it to show him Tsuki. He saw Tsuki crying in her bedroom. She looked as if her world was going to collapse onto itself. Akumashugi cursed the fact that he couldn't hear what was going on.

"You, what are you doing here?"

Akumashugi looked up to see a demon a few feet away from him. Akumashugi ordered away the image of Tsuki and glared at the demon as he hid the mirror within his kimono, "I know you. You are Sesshoumaru,"

Sesshoumaru nodded, "And I have the feeling I know you. Tell me, whose son are you?"

"And why should I tell you?" Akumashugi asked, feigning innocent, "I have no quarrel with you, demon,"

"I should know," Sesshoumaru answered, "because you reek of the scent of my niece,"

Akumashugi smiled a little, "Oh, I see; the ties that bind by blood. Very well then," Akumashugi stood up and approached Sesshoumaru. He was about Sesshoumaru's height, "I will be kind and answer your questions if at the end of this you answer my own,"

"Agreed," Sesshoumaru replied. He then paused, "Are you the son of a demon known as Naraku?"

Akumashugi's smile grew on his face. "I see, you wish to know of my origin. As you wish," Akumashugi said. He then explained, "Yes, my father is the demon Naraku, though I must admit I did not grow up around him truly. My father met my mother briefly in some village while he was injured from some battle, I suspect from the one I have heard called 'Inu-Yasha'. Anyways, my father stayed in the village for sometime with my mother and, inevitably, conceived me. However, my father left before he saw my birth. My mother treated me like a curse upon her soul, realizing that my father was demon and left me on my own as soon as I born. However, we demons have survived worst and I lived on through the years, alone. Then one bright and cheerful day, I met this fair demoness with just a drop of human blood in her. Her hair is silver and she has the ears of a canine, and eyes as yellow as topaz. I believe you know of her,"

"Tsuki," Sesshoumaru breathed, "I found her around this area that fateful day…"

_Sesshoumaru first thought his ears and eyes were playing tricks on him when he thought he saw Inu-Yasha weeping in the forest. He was in the woods, a few days after Jaken had died and years since he had been with Kikyo. Sesshoumaru looked closer to see that it wasn't Inu-Yasha crying while sitting on a rock, but a girl who appeared to look like him. _

"_What are you doing here?" Sesshoumaru said. As he got close to the girl, he could sense some of Inu-Yasha's blood. It was mostly Inu-Yasha's blood, but at the same time he could sense human blood as well – Kagome's, "Why are you crying?"_

_The girl looked up at Sesshoumaru. She stubbornly wiped the tears away and glared at him. She had to be about 12 or so. "I'm not crying, I've got something in my eye!" She defiantly said, but her eyes were still red from tears. _

"_You smell like my half-brother," Sesshoumaru said, "Where are you from?"_

"_And you smell like my Dad," the girl answered, "except there's no human in you. You're a full-blooded demon,"_

"_I should have suspected that he would have children," Sesshoumaru grumbled to himself as he glanced at the girl, "You're Inu-Yasha's daughter, aren't you? He went to the other side years before you were born. What are you doing here?" _

_The girl didn't answer. _

_Sesshoumaru slowly pieced it together. He knew that look on the girl's face from long ago; a look of fear brought on by past rebellion and uncertainty, "You ran away,"_

_The girl made a pouting face and folded her arms. _

_Sesshoumaru sighed, "You should go back home to your family. This isn't your world," _

"_No," the girl stubbornly said. _

"_Why not?" _

"_I don't wanna," the girl snorted. _

_Sesshoumaru was sure she was Inu-Yasha's child now – he that stubborn, unruly, and disobedient little attitude, "Why _did_ you run away?" _

"_Leave me alone!" the girl snapped. She got up and ran into the woods nearby. _

_That was one of the many incidents Sesshoumaru had seen the girl and every time he saw her, she was just as stubborn as her father. _

"That girl you speak of is my niece," Sesshoumaru said.

"Oh?" Akumashugi said. He then smiled, "Then I hope you enjoy having a great-niece,"

"What…?" Sesshoumaru began. He then realized what Akumashugi meant, "You mean–!"

Akumashugi simply smiled, "She should have discovered by now that she is with child. She'll have the child within a few weeks, along with the Jewel of Four Angels,"

"You…_bastard_!" Sesshoumaru yelled. He swiped at Akumashugi with his claws, but Akumashugi turned himself into a dark mist and it went right through him.

"Now answer me this," Akumashugi said, "why does a demon like you spend his time with some undead priestess?"

Sesshoumaru growled in reply and Akumashugi just laughed as he vanished. Sesshoumaru was breathing heavy as he realized what was going on. It seemed that his very world was being turned upside down. Finally, he turned around and went in direction of Kikyo's village.

Shukuen opened the bedroom door only slightly, "..Tsuki?"

A pillow came flying at the door and banged into it, "GO AWAY!"

Shukuen slowly opened the door and shut it behind him. Tsuki was on her bed, crying her eyes out. Shukuen sat down next to her and patted his older sister on the back, "Tsuki, it'll be okay. It's not all that bad,"

"_Yes it is!_" Tsuki sobbed as she swiped at Shukuen. Nothing happened to Shukuen though, Tsuki didn't have her claws. Tsuki angrily smacked the wall and continued to cry, "I'm fucking _pregnant_! I can't believe how _stupid_ I am!"

"Tsuki, you're not stup–" Shukuen began.

"_Yes I am!_" Tsuki yelled, "I _should_ have asked Akumashugi if he had protection! I _should_ have waited until I was older!" She then curled up into a little ball. "You don't understand, Shukuen. I've ruined my _life_! I won't be able to finish school or anything! I won't even be able to have money or anything and I can't have an abortion because then they'd find out I'm not human and neither is the baby!" She then gasped. "Oh my God. Akumashugi…Akumashugi's the father…what's he going to do? He might leave me if I tell him!" She then collapsed onto her side. "Oh God…oh God…oh God…"

Tsuki was hyperventilating. Shukuen held his older sister and tried to calm her down, "Tsuki, try to relax. I'll help you through this, I promise. Listen," Shukuen lifted up Tsuki so that she would face him and look at him in the eye. "what we need to do is tell Mom and Dad, first of all. It's better to tell them right now,"

Tsuki was shaking her head, "…no…no Shukuen…I couldn't tell them…it'd break their hearts…"

"I'll go with you, Tsuki," Shukuen said, "but it'll hurt them more if you keep it a secret," He then bit his lip. "Then you need to tell Akumashugi,"

Tsuki was shaking her head again, "…no…Shukuen…he might...leave me…"

"If Akumashugi was a good boyfriend, he'd stay by your side," Shukuen said, "after all of that, we'll sort it out, but I think it would be better if you told Mom and Dad," Tsuki didn't answer. Shukuen gripped her hand. "It'll be okay, Tsuki. Mom and Dad are in their bedroom. Let's go,"

Tsuki sniffled and wiped away the tears, "O…okay…"

Tsuki held onto her sibling's hand as they entered out of their bedroom and towards their parent's bedroom andtowards an unknown future.


	10. Act 10

Alas, my dear friends, the climax of the story shall be soon! : ( I'm afraid the end is near, my friends, for 'Moon and Destiny'. Oh yes, and I don't own Inu-Yasha and if I did...I would tell my fans what the hell that thing is on Sesshoumaru's side. Is it his tail? Is it a boa? WHAT IS IT?!!?!? Oh well, on with the fic!

Act 10:

"Inu-Yasha, what's wrong?"

Kagome clicked on the bedroom light. Inu-Yasha was lying in bed, staring up at the ceiling. Kagome sighed at him and leaned on his shoulder. Inu-Yasha looked at her, "There's no reason you should be up,"

"You're awake in bed, staring into space, and you don't want me to be concerned?" Kagome asked. She then sighed as she ran her fingers through Inu-Yasha's hair, "What's wrong?"

"I keep thinking about Tsuki," Inu-Yasha sighed, "She was acting weird,"

"She's probably just growing up," Kagome answered.

'_Then tell me why she had the scent of a male demon all over her when she came home,'_ Inu-Yasha thought as he shifted around nervously, but he said nothing. He then looked at Kagome with worried looks, "Kagome, when we had sex, did you act…a little funny?"

Kagome smiled, "Of course I acted funny! Every girl does! Losing your virginity is something very amazing and special if you lose it to the right person," She then kissed Inu-Yasha on the cheek. "And I'd do it all gain too,"

Inu-Yasha paused, _'Tsuki had the scent of a certain demon's seed all on her. She was acting so happy when she came home…just like Kagome…'_

Inu-Yasha sighed as he turned off the light. Kagome looked at him with concerned looks, "What's wrong, Inu-Yasha?"

"I'm fine," Inu-Yasha said, sighing, "I guess I'm just a little…stressed…"

Kagome sighed, "Okay…"

But deep down inside, Inu-Yasha knew the real reason why he was feeling so distant and feeling so low to the ground; because deep down he knew something was wrong with Tsuki – he could feel it in his blood and deep down inside he began to feel that doubt of being a good father.

Sesshoumaru rushed through the woods, back in the direction of Kikyo's village. He had left Rin to fend for herself nearby a ravine so that he could move through the woods without having to worry about her. Rin was older now; she knew how to take care of herself. He arrived at Kikyo's village and saw Kikyo nearby the river.

The river where they had first met.

The river where Kaede's ashes were scattered.

Kikyo saw Sesshoumaru coming and immediately turned her back to him and began to walk off. Sesshoumaru stopped at the edge of the river. He was on one side and Kikyo was on the other.

"Kikyo!" Sesshoumaru called.

Kikyo made no reply.

"_Kikyo_!" Sesshoumaru called again. Kikyo continued walking away. Sesshoumaru growled and jumped over the river and grabbed Kikyo, "Kikyo, you have to listen to me!"

"Get away from me, demon," Kikyo snarled, "I've had enough of your kind plaguing us,"

"Kikyo, this isn't the time for us to fight," Sesshoumaru answered, "This is more important than just us!"

Kikyo snorted and moved away from Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru's words were falling on deaf ears. Sesshoumaru knew he had to give it one more try.

"_KIKYO_!" Sesshoumaru yelled, "The prophecy is coming true! That albino demon is the son of Naraku and the child of darkness and Tsuki is the child of light! That demon is Tsuki's lover and now she's with child! The Jewel of Four Angels is going to be brought into this world!"

Kikyo stopped walking, but didn't turn around to face him.

Sesshoumaru gasped as he looked down onto the ground, "Kikyo…I know this has been difficult for the both of us and I know that I took advantage of you and I know that I'm a demon and you're a demon and I know that you're human and I know that I have a dislike for humans but it's not you, Kikyo, it's…"

Kikyo slowly turned around.

Sesshoumaru continued, "…it's because of my father that I hate humans. It's because that when my own demon mother died, I was upset and I thought no one could replace her and when he married that human, it was as if he was forgetting her…it was as if she never existed…that's why I hated humans…because of her…but you're not her Kikyo…"

Kikyo looked at him with large eyes.

"…because I know that right now…" Sesshoumaru answered, "…that I love you, Kikyo and I can't live without you…"

Kikyo paused. Her eyes filled with tears and she ran into Sesshoumaru's arms. Sesshoumaru held her close to him, holding her, caressing her body. Kikyo held him as well. Sesshoumaru then kissed her as passionately as possible and Kikyo kissed him back.

"Come," Kikyo said to him, "we have to somehow figure out how we can stop the end of our worlds,"

As soon as Reichou came through the door of his house, Sango embraced him in a tearful hug. Reichou hugged her back; he had missed his mother most of all.

"Oh, my baby!" Sango said, as she held him, "I was so afraid!" She then looked at Reichou's eye. "What happened to you?!"

Reichou made a face, "I…fell,"

"I'm just happy you're home," Sango said. She then sniffed, "Your father just called from the hospital! Shippou fainted at school after they tested him and they called an ambulance for him! I was getting ready to go over to see him right now!"

"What's wrong with him?" Reichou gasped. His heart was pounding; ready to jump from out of his throat.

"I don't know!" Sango confessed, starting to cry again, "Your mother just said he was complaining about being cold and all of a sudden he just passed out!"

"It's okay, Mom, don't cry," Reichou said, "Everything's going to be alright,"

Sango was still crying; her sobs echoed through the entire house.

Shippou was shivering and cold in the hospital bed. He had been coughing up blood for the past hour. The doctors were rushing to take care of him; giving him injections and trying to see what was wrong. Miroku was outside of the room. He couldn't stand to see Shippou on the hospital bed like that; looking so sick and so cold. He just sat outside of the door as he saw more and more doctors go in and out the room.

For now, Miroku just sat there. He sat there on the floor and he prayed to all the gods know and unknown.

Kagome and Inu-Yasha were sleeping soundly. The bedroom door creaked a little and Inu-Yasha stirred. He moved towards the lamp and turned it on. Kagome shifted around in bed and then sat up, seeing through her eyelids that the light was on. Shukuen and Tsuki were standing in their bedroom. It was just like when they were little and they had had a nightmare and they wanted to spend the night with them because they were scared. All four of them would share a, very crowded, bed until morning.

Tsuki's eyes were red from crying; just as how she looked when she was smaller. She would come to the bedroom, crying after a terrible nightmare, and wanting to spend the night with them. Shukuen would usually be the next one to come.

"Mom…Dad…" Tsuki sniffled. She then rubbed her eyes, "…I'm so sorry…I'm so sorry…I…I…I'm just so sorry…"

"It's okay, Tsuki," Shukuen said to her, "You can tell them,"

"What's wrong, Tsuki?" Kagome asked. It was the same voice she used when Tsuki was smaller and she was frightened or scared.

"Mom…Dad…" Tsuki sniffed, "…you know I have a boyfriend, right? Well, I've been seeing him and a day ago…last night…we…" Tsuki paused. She could her father's eyes slowly start to widen in horror – as if he knew what was coming. Tsuki looked away as the tears began to come out of her eyes again. Tsuki uttered out the words in a small voice: "…and we had sex…"

Kagome felt as if someone had dropped a boulder on her. Her eyes were widened and her face went white with horror, "…_Tsuki_…"

"And that's not the only thing…" Tsuki added as tears streamed down her cheeks. She then began to sob. The rest of her words were mixed in with her sobs, "…I'm…I'm _pregnant_!"

For a few seconds, Kagome and Inu-Yasha were silent. Then, Tsuki's words began to sink into their brains, triggering several things, clicking several mental gears: anger, frustration, sorrow, regret, wonder, and horror.

Inu-Yasha was the first to react.

"Tsuki! How could do this to us?" Inu-Yasha yelled. Anger. "Do you know that you've ruined your life by doing this?!" Frustration. "You won't be able to finish school or anything like that, or get a decent job! You'll have to work for money and take care of your baby instead of going to college or high school!" Horror. "Oh my God…people are going to call my daughter a whore every time we go to the supermarket or around town!" Sorrow. "Oh, Tsuki…oh, Tsuki…oh, Tsuki…" Wonder. "How are you going to take care of a baby? You're just 16, Tsuki. A future mother at 16…" Regret. "This is all my fault….you were right, Tsuki…this is all my fault, I should have paid more attention to you…I should haven't had had all those arguments with you…I shouldn't of…"

Tsuki was crying. She ran out of the room and back to her bedroom, locking the door. Shukuen ran after her. Kagome looked at Inu-Yasha; he was leaning onto a pillow, looking drained of energy and all the color drained from his face.

"Inu-Yasha…" Kagome said.

"I'm a failure," Inu-Yasha breathed.

"You're not a failure," Kagome said.

"Yes, I am," Inu-Yasha sighed, "I'm a terrible father,"

"You're not a terrible father,"

"Yes, I am. You know it, I know it, both worlds know it,"

"Inu-Yasha–"

"How could I expect to be a good father when I never truly had one myself?"

"_Inu_-_Yasha_–"

"Now my daughter is pregnant at 16 by some guy I haven't even met…"

"**_Inu_**-**_Yasha_**–"

"…how can I blame her? I ignored her when Shukuen was born,"

"Inu-Yasha! Stop doubting yourself! You're a good father!"

"I didn't even know she existed half the time. Tsuki was right, I am a hypocrite,"

"You're not a hypocrite!"

"…and I'm a terrible father too…"

"Inu-Yasha!" Kagome grabbed him. "You're not a terrible father! "This isn't your fault!"

Inu-Yasha couldn't hear Kagome; he could only hear the sorrow filled beating of his heart and his mind finally realizing the actual truth that was being kept from him: he was a bad father.

The fireplace was lit. Kikyo and Sesshoumaru sat on the floor nearby it.

"The Jewel of Four Souls and the Jewel of Four Angels are brothers, so to speak," Kikyo said, "they are yin and yang and together they cancel each other out. The Jewel of Four Angels is only stronger now because the Jewel of Four Souls is no more. If we could forge another Jewel of Four Souls, then we could cancel out the power of the Jewel of Four Angels,"

Sesshoumaru nodded, "How do we do that?"

"We will need many things, since I am not as powerful as the original priestess," Kikyo said, "first of all, we will need four people, human or demon, it doesn't matter. Each of them must represent one of the four souls – knowledge, courage, purity, and friendship. Then, we will need three more people, one of them a priestess, another with a sixth sense, and another with pure demon blood to take all four of them and forge the actual jewel,"

"I see," Sesshoumaru said, "I am full blooded demon, Rin has the sixth sense, and you are the priestess,"

"I'm not powerful enough," Kikyo said, "to be apart of such a holy rite,"

"Yes, you are," Sesshoumaru said. He then kissed Kikyo, "I _know_ you are,"

"But what of the four souls?" Kikyo asked, "Where can we find them?"

"I have a feeling they are very close to us," Sesshoumaru answered as he fingered Kikyo's robe, looking for a way to unbutton her shirt.

"Yes," Kikyo breathed as Sesshoumaru slid her shirt off her shoulders, "I think they are close. I sense them in the children that are here, the latest generation. I believe I remember their names…" Sesshoumaru was trying to take off her skirt. "Yes…Shippou is friendship, Reichou is knowledge, Shukuen is purity, and Tsuki is courage…_oh_!" Sesshoumaru was on top of her now. She kissed him softly. "Do you think we can save our worlds?"

"Of course," Sesshoumaru breathed as he began to kiss her.

They continued; becoming more and more intimate by the second. The fire went ignored and soon it was gone. Sesshoumaru and Kikyo continued with what they were doing; only focused on each other and what the other was doing.

Then the door open.

Rin was at the door. Sesshoumaru and Kikyo froze. Rin could only stare at them; she didn't make a face or say "ew" or anything; she just quietly stared with large eyes. Kikyo blushed scarlet as she put her shirt back on and Sesshoumaru put his pants back on. Rin continued staring. Sesshoumaru then left with Rin; blushing a little. As soon as Rin and him were a few feet from the village, she began to talk.

"I was looking for you, father, and then I remembered how you go to the ghost priestess' hut and I went in there," Rin said, "and…and…" She then looked up at Sesshoumaru. "What _were_ you doing?"

Sesshoumaru sighed, "Rin, when a man and woman love each other very much, they decide to…"

And that was beginning of a very long conversation between Sesshoumaru and Rin.

Sango had driven Reichou and herself to the hospital. They had talked to the receptionist and found where Shippou was. He was on the first floor, in the emergency room. Miroku had been sitting outside of the door, muttering prayer after prayer.

"Miroku!" Sango said.

Miroku saw them and stood up. He glanced at Reichou, looking tired, hungry, and his eye was still swollen for only a second and went to comfort Sango, "It's okay, Sango. Everything is going to be alright…" Sango was still crying. Miroku then turned to Reichou and whispered, "Go call Kagome and Inu-Yasha and tell them to come. It would make your mother feel…more comfortable,"

Reichou timidly nodded and pulled out his cellphone from his pocket.


	11. Act 11

Just went to an anime club thing at MediaPlay, yesterday. I met so many Inu-Yasha fans and I brought a Sesshoumaru plushie! (hugs Sesshoumaru plushie) Also, my fanfic is hosted on , just in case is down or anything, but only the starting chapters are there. (sigh) Oh well. Also, I'm now part of . I'm **zeromana**, the mad scientist. E-mail me sometimes, I could use the company!

Also, everyone is probably going 'HOW THE HELL DID NARAKU DIE?!?!?!'. Well, simply put, I'm not sure if I should say or not, because I heard how Inu-yasha is going to end soon and Naraku is supposed to die there. It may take readers out of the closeness of this fanfic to the original 'Inu-Yasha' if I did the death of Naraku wrong. Well, that's my reason. Also, I don't own Inu-Yasha, but

if I did…I would make a story all about bishounen Sesshoumaru. : )

On with el fic de inu-yasha! (Can you tell I'm flunking Spanish?)

Act 11:

"We need to do something about Tsuki," Kagome sighed, "No matter how upset we are about it, she's going to end up having that baby," Inu-Yasha didn't reply. "I'll call the school today and tell them that we're taking her out," Still no reply. "Then I'll call a gynecologist to check to see how long it'll take until Tsuki is ready to give birth," Silence. "Then we can plan out how we're going to do this." Absolute silence. "I don't know, Inu-Yasha…Tsuki's still just a kid; she may have to give up the baby for adoption or have an abortion, but at her age, she may just miscarry. Her body isn't ready to have a child yet; she's still growing…"

Silence came from Inu-Yasha. Anything that was said to him just bounced off; he didn't want to reply…he just sat there. Kagome hugged him, "It'll be okay. We've been through worse,"

'_No, we haven't. We haven't had trouble like this,'_ Inu-Yasha thought.

Tsuki was crying in the bedroom. Shukuen tried to open the door, but it was locked tight. Tsuki continued crying and Shukuen sighed as he sat nearby the door. Downstairs, the telephone rang. Shukuen went down the stairs and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" Shukuen asked.

_ Hello, Shukuen _a voice said. Reichou.

"Reichou? Where are you?" Shukuen asked.

_ I went back home, Shukuen, _ Reichou answered. There was a lot of static; he was on his cellphone, _ I miss my family. Dad wants your family to come to the hospital, _

"The hospital? Why?"

_ Shippou is sick. He's in the emergency room. Mom's upset and she could use a little company, _

"My parents are already upset,"

_ What happened? _

"Tsuki's…umm…it doesn't matter. I'll tell them right away,"

_ Wait! Shukuen! _

"What?"

_ I…I still love you… _

Shukuen paused, "Reichou, I like you to but–"

_ I don't care what my Dad thinks anymore! Love is love, Shukuen, _

Shukuen sighed, "But, Reichou, I have a boyfriend–"

Reichou paused, _ …oh. I've…I've got to…go…. _

Shukuen was pleading, "Reichou! Don't go! Meant to tell you earlier but–"

_ Goodbye, Shukuen, _ Reichou answered.

Shukuen pleaded for him not to go, but Reichou had gotten off the cellphone. Shukuen sighed bitterly as he put the phone down. The phone rang again and Shukuen picked it up.

"Hello…?" Shukuen asked.

_ Shukuen, _ said a voice. It was Yuki, _ I thought we were supposed to go to the movies today. You were supposed to come over my house and meet me there, _

Shukuen bit his lip, "Sorry, Yuki…things have gotten a little...hectic around here,"

_ I heard about Shippou, _ Yuki said, _Are you okay, Shukuen? You've been acting a little distant lately,_

Shukuen sighed, "I'm sorry, Yuki…it's just…that…"

_ That what? _

"I kissed Reichou,"

_ You…WHAT? _

"I kissed Reichou…" Shukuen confessed, "I'm so sorry, Yuki! I didn't mean to hurt you! It's just that…he kissed me first and it was just a little kiss and I didn't want to hurt his feelings but I told him today that I had a boyfriend and everything so don't be mad, Yuki. I didn't want to keep this from you. Please don't be upset, Yuki,"

A pause, _ It's over, _

Shukuen paused, "…what?"

_ I'm sorry, Shukuen, it's over. Goodbye, _

"Wait! Yuki! Don't go! I'm _sorry_!"

Yuki had already hung up the phone by the time Shukuen spoke. The phone clattered to the ground and Shukuen fell onto the ground and began to sob.

Tsuki was curled up on her bed; still crying bitter tears of regret. She just wished she could be pulled out of this time, this place, and go somewhere where all her troubles were just figments and she wasn't pregnant and that she was still happy with Akumashugi. But it was impossible. There was no place to go and feel completely safe; no place in all of Japan.

But there was Sengoku-no-Jidai…

Tsuki slowly stopped crying; her head pounding. She had memories of when she was smaller and she was upset; she would run away to the park and hide in the well to clear her head. One day when she was hiding in the well, she had slipped into Sengoku-no-Jidai by accident and there she had met so many people: Sesshoumaru, Kikyo, and that one fateful day, Akumashugi. Tsuki got up from her bed and dried her eyes: she would go to the park and think about everything there and then go to Sengoku-no-Jidai and talk to Akumashugi. If he truly did love her, he would stick by her side.

Carefully, Tsuki opened the bedroom window and climbed out of it, going unnoticed and not making a noise.

Akumashugi laid in his hut, looking at his mirror. He got a misty image of Tsuki escaping from her house and running away from it. Akumashugi growled in frustration as he tried to get a better image of her, but the image soon blinked out of existence. Akumashugi grumbled as he put away the mirror within his kimono and then sat up on his bed. He knew Tsuki would be coming to him, very soon she would be right there, wanting to be with him.

'_I'm sorry that I've had to put you in such a difficult situation, love,'_ Akumashugi mentally apologized to Tsuki, _'but it is the only way to get the Jewel of Four Angels. Then we can remake the world…together; just for us and no one else,'_ Akumashugi then teleported out of the hut; leaving no mark he had been there except for a puff of smoke.

Shukuen had finished crying and journeyed back up the stairs to his parent's bedroom. He creaked open the door. He could faintly hear his parents talking about Tsuki and her unborn child. With every muscle is body growing tenser, Shukuen entered the room.

"Mom, Dad…" Shukuen began.

"Shukuen…?" Kagome asked, "What's wrong?"

"Reichou just called," Shukuen said, "Shippou is in the hospital. His mother's really upset,"

Inu-Yasha and Kagome looked at each other with wide eyes, "SHIPPOU!"

Tsuki ran all the way to the park. There, in the woodlands of the park, she felt safer, calmer, and she could think straight. She knew what she had to do now: she had confronted her parents, now she had to confront Akumashugi. She knew that if he truly loved her, he would help her support their child. Taking a deep breath, Tsuki moved the cover from off the well and jumped down it into the darkness.

Akumashugi could feel her presence in the forest now. He could see in the distant a confused and upset Tsuki, coming out of the well and looking for him. She was calling his name now. "Akumashugi! Akumashugi!" Akumashugi smiled a little; he was right, she would come for him after all. He took out his mirror and signaled Tsuki. Tsuki saw the signal and came running towards him, leaping into the treetops and back down again. Akumashugi elegantly placed himself on the ground, looking as if he was doing nothing, as if he hadn't been waiting for her.

"Akumashugi! Thank God I found you!" Tsuki said as she embraced Akumashugi in a tearful hug.

"What's wrong, my beautiful dog goddess?" Akumashugi asked as he kissed her, "You look as if you've been crying all night long,"

Tsuki rubbed her eyes, "Akumashugi…I…I'm…!" She began to cry again.

"What's wrong, love?"

Tsuki held onto Akumashugi. "Akumashugi, I'm pregnant! That night when did it after a while I felt sick and I took a tester and it was positive! I just told my parents about it and I wanted to tell you! Oh, Akumashugi, what are we going to do?" Tsuki sobbed, "I'm just 16 years old and I can't take care of a baby, but I don't want to kill it and have an abortion either! Akumashugi, what are we going to do? What are we going to do?"

Akumashugi paused. He then held onto Tsuki and kissed her. "Don't worry, Tsuki," Akumashu-gi whispered, "I'll take care of you. We can go to the other world together and we can live there with your parents for a little while. I have some money that should take care of us for a little while," He gently put his hand on Tsuki's stomach. "…_all_ three of us,"

"Aku...ma…" Tsuki sniffled. She then held onto him even tighter, "_Akumashugi_!"

Akumashugi held onto her tightly as well. "Don't worry, Tsuki, everything is going to be alright for all of us," Akumashugi whispered, _'And then when our child is born, there'll be a world just perfect for you and I and our child,' _

Tsuki was nowhere to be found in the house. Kagome knew she had left when she saw the opened window in the bedroom. Still, Inu-Yasha, Shukuen, and Kagome got in the car and then drove towards the hospital (only Shukuen left a note for Tsuki, should she return, to tell her their location). They found Sango, Miroku, and Reichou sitting in the waiting room.

"Sango!" Kagome said.

"Oh, _Kagome_!" Sango gasped as she ran over to her old friend and hugged her, "I'm so worried about Shippou! He's been in there for hours and no one's told us about what's going to happen yet!"

Inu-Yasha was silent. Reichou felt his heart pound a little faster as he glanced at Shukuen. Shukuen looked back at him with longing eyes. Reichou would have said something, had it not been for the watchful glare of his father.

"Are you sure you want to leave?" Tsuki asked Akumashugi.

"There is nothing for me here," Akumashugi answered, "Let us go,"

Akumashugi and Tsuki jumped down the well together. They arrived back in the park. Akumashugi looked around with slight curiosity as he saw the people on cars and bicycles going by on the streets and sidewalks. Tsuki lead him back to the house. Inside, Tsuki found Shukuen's note on the kitchen counter.

"My God!" Tsuki gasped.

"What's wrong?" Akumashugi asked.

Tsuki wanted to cry, but her tears were dried up, "Everyone's at the hospital! We have to go!"

"The hospital…?" Akumashugi asked, "What's that?"

"It's a place for…the sick and injured," Tsuki answered quietly. She then grabbed Akumashugi, "Let's _go_!"

Kagome was busy comforting Sango when she saw Tsuki come into the waiting room along with an albino young man. The albino young man was wearing a red and black kimono; as if it had been made a long time ago.

"Tsuki!" Kagome gasped, "Where were you?"

"Mom, Dad, this is Akumashugi," Tsuki said, "He's my…boyfriend…"

"I'm very pleased to meet you," Akumashugi said smoothly, "I'm sorry we couldn't meet on a…_happier_ note,"

Inu-Yasha snapped awake as soon as he heard Akumashugi's voice. He ran over to Akumashugi and grabbed him by the collar, "You _BASTARD_!"

"_Inu_-_Yasha_!" Miroku said, grabbing him, "I know how much you care about Tsuki but–"

"–you think you can just–" Inu-Yasha yelled.

A doctor entered the waiting room, "Excuse me,"

"–sleep with my–"

"_Excuse_ _me_,"

"–daughter and get–"

"**_Excuse_** **_me_**,"

"–her pregnant and just–"

"EXCUSE ME!"

Inu-Yasha stopped talking. The entire waiting room quieted down. The doctor walked over to a shocked Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Tsuki, Shukuen, Reichou, Sango, and Miroku.

"Are you Shippou's family?" the doctor asked.

"We are," Miroku said, gesturing to Sango, Reichou, and himself, "they're friends,"

"I have some…news," the doctor said.

"What is it?" Sango asked.

"I'm afraid," the doctor said, "Shippou is going to die,"


	12. Act 12

I was thinking after 'Moon and Destiny', maybe I should do a sequel or something. I was thinking about 'Moon and Destiny: Another Universe', in which it would be the same storyline except things would be different since it takes place in an alternative universe: in which Akumashugi doesn't exist, Rin would be more a major character, and the story would start off when all the kids would hit puberty. It would slightly more comedic than this fic, but I'm not sure if I should do it or not. It may confuse the fans. What do you guys think? E-mail me and tell me, please! I'm open to suggestion!

Okay, now you all probably want me to shut up and continue with the fic! On with el ficco!

Act 12:

Everyone froze. Time froze. Even the other people in the waiting room grew silent. They all were waiting, waiting to see what was going to happen next, waiting to see what terrible news was coming next.

Miroku was struggling with what he was hearing, "…what? What do you mean…?"

The doctor had a pained look on his face. This was the hardest part of the job: having to tell the parents about their child. The doctor even looked away as he spoke.

"Shippou is dying, I'm afraid to say," the doctor spoke quietly, "It seems that all those past substance abuses like the smoking and drinking is getting to him. We even found a tracing of opium in his system," The doctor paused. "His body can't take it; it's shutting down,"

"…oh…oh _God_…" Sango muttered.

The doctor licked his lips and continued, "We've managed to hook him up to a machine that will keep his system going on, but he'll be in constant pain, and it'll only last a month. But it is inevitable: Shippou is going to die either now or a month later. I suggest…" The doctor's words seemed to be caught in his mouth. He then started to speak again. "…I suggest pulling the plug on him now…"

"Pulling the plug…?" Reichou gasped.

"Shutting down the machine," Kagome bitterly answered, "Killing Shippou,"

"It's a mercy killing!" the doctor pleaded, "I know it's not an easy thing to do considering how young Shippou is, but this type of trauma to the body is fatal! Every breath he takes is going to be painful if he remains hooked up like that! And even if he does recover somehow, he won't be the same as before! He'll probably be paralyzed or disable! You should…!" The doctor paused. He then quickly headed out of the room, muttering, "…you should spare him the pain of _living_,"

"Wait," Tsuki said. The doctor turned around, "Can we see him? Can we see Shippou?"

The doctor swallowed hard, "You…you may not…it maybe best if you…not…it might…_bother_ you…a little…"

"Let us see him," Miroku said.

The doctor nodded meekly and led them all to Shippou's hospital room. He slowly opened the door and ushered out some of the nurses. Everyone saw Shippou and tried not to scream or cry.

Shippou was behind a see-through curtain, lying on a hospital bed. He had two machines on each side of him. Each of the machines had wires coming out of them and the wires were attached to Shippou's skin. There was a huge cord attached to his bare chest, monitoring his heart. Shippou was lying with his head on a pillow, looking dazed and confused. He was shivering all over.

"Why…why is he…shivering?" Inu-Yasha asked.

"His body is slowly shutting itself down," the doctor said, "and it's starting to drop temperature while in the process. We're doing everything to keep him comfortable and warm,"

Tsuki silently walked over to Shippou. She looked at Shippou with large yellow eyes. Shippou stirred a little and rolled onto his side. He looked up at Tsuki with pain in his eyes.

"_Shippou_! Don't move!" Tsuki said.

Shippou ignored her and forced himself to sit up. He gripped onto the curtain and looked at Tsuki. He looked at Tsuki and opened his mouth.

"Shippou…Shippou, you idiot…you're going to hurt yourself…" Tsuki sniffled; tears starting to pool into her eyes.

Shippou coughed, "…tsu…tsuk…tsuki…"

"Shippou.." Tsuki said as she put he hand up onto the curtain, "…Shippou, stop it…you're going to…going to…"

Shippou was ignoring her. He then gripped onto the curtain for support and looked at Tsuki. He then whispered to Tsuki, so that only she could hear it:

"…_anything_ _for_ _you_, _Tsuki_…"

Shippou body suddenly shook violently and he vomited blood onto the hospital bed. The doctor grabbed his beeper and alerted several nurses and doctors. Everyone was ushered out of the room as people came rushing in, carrying all sorts of medical things. As soon as she was out the room, Tsuki ran away from the group.

"_TSUKI_!" Kagome yelled.

Tsuki ran away from the room and down the hallway. She found another waiting room in another wing of the hospital. It was completely empty. She went into the corner of the waiting room and scrunched up into a little ball, hiding there. After a few minuets, she could hear the door creaking open. Tsuki continued crying.

"Tsuki…" a voice said. Tsuki looked up to see it was Akumashugi. Akumashugi sat next to Tsuki and put his arms around, "…Tsuki, what's wrong…?"

"You know exactly what's wrong!" Tsuki snapped. She then put her head on Akumashugi's shoulder, "Oh, Akumashugi! He…he just looked so sick and sad and I just kept getting the feeling that it was all my fault that he was like that! Like…like it should have been me in that bed and not him! And then…and then just threw up…and…and..."

Akumashugi held Tsuki, "Tsuki, I love you so much. I would die if you were like that. I'm sure Shippou wouldn't want that for you either. Who knows? Maybe if we give him some time, he'll get better," Tsuki sniffled with agreement. Akumashugi then kissed her. "Tsuki, I was thinking…" He paused. "I…I love you, Tsuki…and I know that this child we're going to have is…unexpected…but I was thinking that sometime…maybe in the future…we could…"

Tsuki looked up at him, "…what is it, Akumashugi?"

Akumashugi paused. He then kissed Tsuki, "I want to marry you, Tsuki,"

"Marry…me? But Akumashugi, I'm just 16!"

Akumashugi smiled, "Yes, but you're going to be a mother as well, so we may as well be married. I want the child to have my last name," He then kissed her again. "And I want to move in with you and your parents as well, so we can at least raise the baby all together,"

Tsuki smiled sweetly and hugged Akumashugi, "Oh, Akumashugi! I would love to marry you! We should do it right away, or at least before the baby is born!"

Akumashugi smiled as he kissed Tsuki on the neck, _'I'm afraid that's impossible, love, for you see a demon's pregnancy only lasts for some weeks and a pregnancy as magical as this one will only last for so long. In fact, you should be ready to give birth at about a week from now…maybe even less!'_

Sesshoumaru had returned back to the village, with a Rin who had just learned a little bit more about the world around her. Kikyo was in the hut, waiting for them. Rin began to shrink away from Kikyo as soon as she saw her, but Sesshoumaru urged her forwards. Rin was shaking and took tiny baby steps towards Kikyo. Rin quietly held out her hand; in her hand was flower. Kikyo took the flower, but before she could even say thank you, Rin ran away.

"She'll get used to you…eventually…" Sesshoumaru said to Kikyo.

"She is a sweet girl," Kikyo said. She invited Sesshoumaru into her hut, "I wasn't expecting you today, Sesshoumaru. What brings you here?"

"It's about the son of Naraku," Sesshoumaru said, "His name is Akumashugi. I believe he isn't…pure evil…"

"What do you mean?" Kikyo asked as she sat on the floor.

Sesshoumaru sat down onto the ground as well, "I don't believe he is pure evil. I met him twice. At one time, he appeared to be a ferocious demonic creature, then I met him again and he was polite, if not a little haughty. I believe there are double intentions to wanting The Jewel of Four Angels,"

"Double intentions?" Kikyo asked.

"As if there were two different purposes for him wanting it," Sesshoumaru sighed. "But he has already impregnated his lover, Inu-Yasha's daughter and it is only a matter of time before she gives birth…"

Kikyo paused, "A child born of two demons would be incredibly strong. A dangerous creature. Many villagers would want to hunt it down and kill it for it's power. I believe in the next world, they may consider it dangerous as well. A child with such power increased by The Jewel of Four Angels could cause catastrophic damage," She sighed. "That is why it is are for two demons to have children; they know that other demons would try to hunt them down and kill it because such a creature would disrupt the natural order,"

Sesshoumaru gasped, "We demons do have a rule against breeding with other demons. We are to kill the parents and the spawn immediately," He then breathed deeply. "With The Jewel of Four Angels, one could rip apart the worlds…"

"…as well as create!" Kikyo gasped. She then swallowed deeply, "My Gods…he's going to use the jewel to rip apart the worlds, an evil purpose…"

"…but he's going to creature another world," Sesshoumaru finished, "…for himself and Tsuki and their child because another side of him loves her!"

Kikyo gasped, "This…this is madness! What can we do to fight such a terrible thing!"

Sesshoumaru paused.

"We must do what we can do," Sesshoumaru said, "we must go to the other world and alert Inu-Yasha,"


	13. Act 13

Yes, it's time for unlucky chapter number 13 of 'moon and destiny'. Who knows what shall happen? Will Shippou die? Will Shippou live? Will Kikyo and Sesshoumaru EVER stopscrewing each other?Who knows? I'm not truly sure if Shippoushould die or not now. Oh, relax, I know what's going to happen…before you do! (evil laughter) Ahem. On with the accursed fic of black cats and broken mirrors!

Act 13:

"Sango, you should go home," Kagome said.

"No, Kagome, I can't," Sango sniffled. They were all in the waiting room, "I can't just leave him here. You saw how sick Shippou is right now. I can't abandon him like this,"

"She's right, Sango," Miroku sighed, "We should all go home. We're just getting in the way here. We need to let Shippou stay in the doctor's hands for now. We need to go home and…think about our situation,"

Sango looked down, "Alright…I guess I'm no good here; crying like this,"

The door to the waiting room opened and Tsuki entered with Akumashugi. Tsuki quietly approached her parents, Akumashugi by her side.

"Mom…Dad…" Tsuki said, barely above a whisper, "…Akumashugi has an…idea…"

"Tsuki's mother and father," Akumashugi said, as sweetly as possible, "forgive me about our…current situation…that we have. I know that things like this are difficult for parents as great as yourselves to…deal with. Therefore, I have a proposition for you," Kagome and Inu-Yasha listened in on what this young man had to say. "I want to take your daughter Tsuki's hand in marriage,"

"Let _you_ marry _my_ daughter?" Inu-Yasha snarled. He picked up Akumashugi, "You're the one that got her into this mess with your goddamn hormones!" His eyes then turned to dangerous slits. "I have half a mind to rip you from apart using my claws!"

"Dad, _no_!" Tsuki yelled.

"Inu-Yasha, _stop_!" Kagome yelled. She grabbed Inu-Yasha's free claw, "I know you're angry about this entire situation but that's no reason to kill him! He's just a kid!"

"Fuck that!" Inu-Yasha growled, "This 'kid' you're talking about his full blooded _demon_! I can smell it on him! He probably devoured the flesh of the mortal boy he looks like!"

Akumashugi snorted and then teleported out of Inu-Yasha's grip and into the corner of the room. He glared at Inu-Yasha, "You know, _Dad_, I was thinking about trying to handle this in a more civilized manner. Not all of demons are blood thirst like you," Akumashugi then sighed. "All I want to do is try to make the best of this terrible situation. I want to marry your daughter so that your grandchild won't be born out of wedlock,"

"I would rather _drop_ _dead_ than have some scum like you in my family!" Inu-Yasha growled.

"Dad! Akumashugi! _Stop_!" Tsuki said. Tsuki said let out a cry of pain as she held onto her stomach.

"Tsuki…?" Shukuen asked.

Tsuki groaned and the room started to spin. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she saw Shukuen yell for her, but Tsuki didn't hear. Tsuki collapsed onto the ground and her vision was soon clouded by darkness.

Sesshoumaru twitched. Kikyo sat up and looked at him. The sun was setting outside in the window. Rin was sleeping in another room on her own little bed.

"What's wrong?" Kikyo whispered.

"I just felt something…strange…" Sesshoumaru said, "…as if some sleeping power just began to slowly get ready to rise from a deep slumber," He looked at Kikyo. " The Jewel of Four Angels is going to come into this world soon,"

"I thought we had more time…" Kikyo began.

"It appears we don't," Sesshoumaru sighed. He got out of bed and began to put his clothes back on, "We need to leave for the other world…tonight hopefully,"

"_Tonight_?" Kikyo said, "Isn't that too early?"

"The Jewel of Four Angels could come into this world any day now," Sesshoumaru answered, "We need to leave and tell the others. We cannot save our worlds alone,"

"What of Rin?" Kikyo asked, "She's so small. She can't possibly make the journey,"

Sesshoumaru paused, "…Rin is older now. She can take care of herself. She knows of the dangers of the world around her. She'll come with us,"

Kikyo sighed. She got out of bed and began to put her clothes back on, "Then it is down the well we go,"

Kagome had ran into the hallways and grabbed the nearest doctor; telling then about Tsuki and her current situation. Tsuki was immediately taken down into another wing of the hospital. Inu-Yasha, Miroku, Sango, Kagome, Reichou, Shukuen, and Akumashugi waited outside of Tsuki's room in the hallway. They only had to wait a few minuets before a nurse came out.

"Is my little girl okay?" Kagome asked.

"She's fine, Ms. Higurashi," the nurse answered. She then smiled sadly, "But I'm afraid your 'little girl' is going to be a mother. It seems that the fetus is developing very fast. At this rate, she might be ready to give birth within a week. This is the most extraordinary thing I've ever seen! It's as if she's a superhuman!"

"Can you tell at this moment what gender the baby is going to be?" Akumashugi asked.

"Not right now," the nurse said, "maybe in a few days we'll find out, but it looks it _might_ be a girl,"

Akumashugi nodded, but he didn't look all too happy. Inu-Yasha went up to the nurse, "Can we go see her now?"

The nurse smiled, "Of course! She's perfectly healthy, but she seems to be a little stressed, so try to keep her nice and calm,"

Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Akumashugi, Sango, and Miroku went inside of the hospital room. Shukuen didn't want to see his sister on a hospital bed like Shippou and Reichou didn't ever want to go back into a hospital room ever again after seeing Shippou. He just wanted to go home…he just wanted to go home and pretend that Shippou was still okay and that he wasn't dying…he just wanted to go home and pretend that Shippou wasn't hooked up to some machine or coughing but blood…he just wanted…

"Reichou…?" Shukuen asked.

Reichou felt tears slip down his cheeks. He looked at Shukuen, who was filled with concern. Reichou then bitterly wiped away the tears, "I'm fine,"

Shukuen sighed and he put his hand on Reichou's shoulder, "Reichou, if you want to talk…"

"Shukuen," Reichou sighed, "you know how my Dad…feels. I don't need another one of these," Reichou gestured towards his black eye.

"Reichou," Shukuen said, "you can't just keep running from him. He lives with you. You can't let him just hit you and stuff. You should…tell someone,"

"Tell _who_?" Reichou snapped, "My Mom agrees wit –"

"Reichou," Shukuen said.

"– my Dad says and she doesn't have the–"

"_Reichou_," Shukuen said.

"–guts to tell him to piss off! I'm better–"

"**_Reichou_**,"

"–off just keeping it to mys–"

Shukuen put a finger to Reichou's lips. He then looked up at Reichou. Shukuen then whispered, "Reichou, I know you can stand up to your father, because you have the type of strength that I don't have and that I wish I had. I know you won't let him get away with this. Anyways," Shukuen put his lips on Reichou's. "that black eye doesn't fit you,"

Reichou savored the taste of Shukuen's lips and began to feel his arms slowly start to wrap around Shukuen's waist. "Shu…kuen…" Reichou gasped as they kissed, "…my Dad could come out and see us any…minuet now…"

"Let him see," Shukuen answered as he stroked Reichou's neck.

"But what about…your boyfriend?" Reichou gasped as he began to French kiss Shukuen.

"We broke up," Shukuen answered as he began to French kiss him back.

Reichou began to kiss Shukuen's neck, "Aren't you a…little…upset?"

Shukuen let out a little gasp of surprise as Reichou kissed him. He ran his finger through Reichou's hair, "Fuck him," Reichou continued kissing and Shukuen held onto him. "I…I love you, Reichou…"

Reichou smiled as he kissed Shukuen, "…I love…"

The last part of that statement hung in Reichou's throat, because at the moment Reichou saw Miroku and Inu-Yasha standing in the doorway of Tsuki's room; staring at their sons.


	14. Act 14

Ah, yes, the accursed girl known as ZeroSoul has finally willed this chapter into existence. I shall reply to my shocked reviewers by saying: thank you for reviewing in the first place. I have been attempting to e-mail you but sadly, my e-mail is refusing to work. (cries) But anyways, you probably want me to shut up and continue on with the fic. : ) But one little note before I go.

Rosutokon: rosuto kon: lost soul

Yousanjikai: you(kai) sanjikai: the council of demons

Shugotenshi: guardian angel

Act 14:

Reichou separated himself from Shukuen. Miroku had his arms folded and looked extremely unhappy. Inu-Yasha had a blank face; not knowing how to react to the situation. Reichou approached his father; staring him straight in the eye, not flinching.

"Dad," Reichou said, "I know how much you don't like the fact that I'm…this way…but it's who I am! I'm proud to be this way and you should accept that! I love other men; I always have and I always will and there's _nothing_ you can do about that! Dad…" Reichou looked at him bitterly. "…why can't you accept me for who I am?"

Miroku paused.

"…because you're a _disgrace_," Miroku answered quietly, "No son of my is going to be some goddamn homosexual. I told you, Reichou, you can't possibly love another boy,"

"Dad," Reichou pleaded, "why can't you have an open mind about this like everyone else? What's so wrong about it? Love is love, Dad,"

Miroku snorted, "As I said before, Reichou, you can't possibly love another boy. You just think you do," He grabbed Reichou's arm. "Come on, Reichou, we're going home,"

"Dad! Wait! What about Shippou?" Reichou yelled.

"Shippou will be fine. Your mother is staying," Miroku said, "_We're_ going home,"

"Dad! Stop it! You're _hurting_ me!" Reichou yelled.

"Miroku, _stop_," Inu-Yasha said, "I know you're angry about your son, but that doesn't give you a reason to hurt him,"

"_Listen_," Miroku snarled, "I wouldn't start talking about my parenting skills considering you have a fag for a son and a knocked-up teenaged slut for a daughter!" Miroku gripped Reichou by the collar. "And this mostly your fault! Because _your_ lousy parenting, I have to put up with _his_," He gestured at Reichou. "fag phase! I just hope I can get this shit out of his head before it pollutes his mind any longer!"

Claws suddenly raked across Miroku's face. Miroku stumbled back, mostly from the shock of being scratched, but he felt the throbbing pain of the deep claw marks in his skin. His grip on Reichou loosened a little as he looked up at Inu-Yasha. Inu-Yasha was furious. He grabbed Miroku by the collar and raised him into the air.

"You can call me whatever shit you want, Miroku," Inu-Yasha said, "You can call me a hanyou or an inbreed or a mongrel or anything like…anyone can because my father used to do the same but what you DO NOT DO is call my kids anything!" His eyes grew to dangerous slits. "My kids may have made mistakes in the past and they may have made me angry and they have given me grief or whined or complained or bitched or moaned about _every_ _little_ _thing_ I ask of them, but I still love them and even though…" He paused as he glanced at Shukuen. "…and though I may not agree with their lifestyle choices, they're still my kids and I'll be with them until the very end; unlike slime like you that goes ahead and mistreats their kids for who they are!"

Inu-Yasha then let go of Miroku. Miroku fell onto the ground. Miroku sat there, looking bitter and defeated. Finally, he got off the floor and left the hospital. Reichou could sigh as he slumped against the hallway wall.

Inside of Tsuki's room, Sango, Akumashugi, and Kagome did their best to make Tsuki comfortable. Tsuki was exhausted and half awake the entire time.

"How are you, love?" Akumashugi asked as he kissed Tsuki.

"Fine," Tsuki weakly answered. She then twitched and looked at her stomach, "Something moved,"

"What?" Kagome asked.

"Mom, something _moved_!" Tsuki said, starting to get a little nervous.

Sesshoumaru stiffened as the air grew frigid suddenly and unusually cold. Kikyo noticed what was wrong and so was Rin. Rin herself began to look very nervous. They had begun their walk towards the well where the other world lay.

"What is it?" Kikyo whispered.

Sesshoumaru looked at Kikyo, with fear in his eyes, "There are Rosutokon forming in this area,"

"Rosutokon?" Kikyo asked.

"Lost souls of the dead…" Rin breathed, "…the souls that cannot find heaven or hell…the souls that become defenders…the souls that nothing can stop…the souls that aid demons…"

"Rin is right," Sesshoumaru answered, "In times of troubles the Yousanjikai would dispatch them and bind them into physical bodies using enchantments and send them out to destroy enemies that could cause trouble for all demons, but such a feat takes too much energy and time and they only tend to dispatch one at a time since they are hard to control but I sense three of them closing in on the well…" He swallowed hard. "…and _us_,"

Rin was shivering all over, "…they are…they are…coming…"

"Come, Rin," Sesshoumaru said, taking her by the arm, "there's no reason to be afraid,"

"I have never heard of this Yousanjikai you speak of," Kikyo said.

"They are the…demon council. They prefer to be kept secret," Sesshoumaru answered, "and they will look down on me for even mentioning their name to mortals,"

"You know of them?" Kikyo asked as they continued walking.

"I am affiliated with them. All full blooded demons are," Sesshoumaru said, "How do you think Naraku acquired his money and his estate before Inu-Yasha killed him?"

"I assumed he killed the original owner,"

"No, the truth is that the Yousanjikai gave it to him. The Yousanjikai knew that if Naraku was to kill the original owner, who was a very powerful man with a large family, all his relatives and servants would come after all demons in order to avenge their forgotten master, especially his children, and it would be a burden on all demons. So, the Yousanjikai bought off Naraku's estate from the man and gave it to Naraku,"

"I didn't realize you demons knew how to think things out so well,"

"The Yousanjikai are not necessarily demons. They are some sort of…higher power, something that is above demon. I believe they maybe demigods of some sort,"

A roaring filled the air and the trees rattled as it bent their branches and leaves. The ground slowly began to shake and something was coming…something large and something that had the scent of blood.

"They're coming…" Rin breathed, "…they're coming…they're going to eat us…"

"Rin? What's wrong?" Kikyo asked.

"She's has the second sight," Sesshoumaru growled, "She can hear the voices and thoughts of the dead and the tortured souls of the departed,"

Rin's eyes rolled into the back of her head as she began to speak, _"…help me…help me…I'm trapped…I want to be free…I want to go to heaven…I want to be there with my family…why am I still here? Why do I feel this pain…? Why does it hurt?_ _Is this some sort of hell? Is this hell? Where am I? Why can't I die? Why can't I leave? Why must I be this way? Why…? Why…?"_

Sesshoumaru shook Rin, "Rin! Come out of it! Shake it off!"

"_Blood…I must have blood to survive…I must drink blood to live….I must quench my first in the blood…my master says it…my master says that if I drink of blood I shall leave…I shall leave and be one with my family…mother…father…sister! I want to join you! Let me join you again!_" Rin gasped; her body shaking.

"It's no use," Kikyo said, "The girl has gone into a mental trance. She has touched the mind of the Rosutokon you speak of. She's too young to know how to pull out of it,"

The roaring occurred again and Sesshoumaru picked up Rin, who was still in a trance, "We must make it to the well before the Rosutokon come,"

Something leapt from over the trees and landed a few feet away from Sesshoumaru, Kikyo, and Rin. It was a creature that looked like a blob of black ooze, except it had multiple red, bloodshot, eyes all over its body, tentacles, and a huge gaping mouth, lined with sharp teeth. Everywhere it moved, it burnt the grass as so did its tentacles. Kikyo strung her bow and sent loose an arrow. The arrow stabbed one of the creature's tentacles, but it took no true effect.

"Damn!" Kikyo cursed, "My sacred arrow has no effect!"

"Nothing sacred does!" Sesshoumaru answered as he grabbed Kikyo and began to run, "The Rosutokon are not evil souls; they're just looking for a way to leave this world in peace like they were meant to but they can't be accepted into heaven or hell because of certain circumstances!"

Two Rosutokon appeared – another in the shape of a large spider and another in the shape of a fox.

"What do we do now?" Kikyo breathed.

"What we do best," Sesshoumaru answered. He gave Rin to Kikyo, "take care of her,"

"Sesshoumaru, what are you–" Kikyo began.

Sesshoumaru leapt for the fox Rosutokon and ripped it in half with his claw. The blob Rosutokon came lunging forth, but Sesshoumaru ripped it as well. The spider Rosutokon charged, but it was too fast for Sesshoumaru to react…and slashed right into Sesshoumaru's leg.

"SESSHOUMARU!" Kikyo yelled. She was about to run to him, but Sesshoumaru made a gesture for her to keep away.

"Go…go on…" Sesshoumaru said, his teeth clenched, "…go to the other world! I need to keep it busy!" Kikyo stood there, shaking all over in fear. "_GO_!"

Kikyo fought back tears of worry and she ran to the well with Rin, "I love you!"

"I…I…I love you to," Sesshoumaru gasped. He watched Kikyo run to the well and jump down it. Once he saw that she was gone, Sesshoumaru looked up at the last remaining Rosutokon with a smirk, "Just you and me, Rosutokon…"

The spider Rosutokon let out a defiant roar and opened its jaws to snap Sesshoumaru in half, but it suddenly pulled back. In the distance, Sesshoumaru could see a cloaked demon standing underneath a tree with an eye tattooed on his face, right before he passed out onto the ground.

Kikyo was breathing heavy by the time she got out of the well. Rin had stopped having her fits as soon as they were on the other side. Kikyo looked around at everything: the strange moving contraptions in the street, the oddly dressed people…it was as if she had stumbled into some sort of fantasy land.

"Where's my father?" Rin asked.

"He…he'll be here soon," Kikyo answered, a little more coldly than she wanted; she had never had much luck with children. She then took Rin's hand and tried to speak in a more comforting voice, "Let us just find Inu-Yasha and we'll make everything all better,"

"O…okay…" Rin quietly said. She then looked around, "But how do we find him in such a big place?"

"The only I know how," Kikyo answered, "I'll use my magic; I pray it still works here,"

Akumashugi decided that he would stay overnight with Tsuki in the hospital and Kagome had decided the exact same thing. Inu-Yasha was taking Shukuen, Reichou, and Sango home. Akumashugi sat on the hospital bed next to Tsuki, rubbing her bulging stomach.

"I feel her moving…" Tsuki muttered as she looked at her stomach.

"That means that it's alive and well," Akumashugi answered with a smile. Kagome had fallen asleep in the chair, as most people her age did.

"It's a _she_, not an _it_," Tsuki insisted.

"How do you know?" Akumashugi asked.

"I don't know. I just…feel it," Tsuki sighed, "I just feel as if I know all about this baby. What color it's hair is going to be, the color of it's eyes, if it's going to have my ears or not, if she's going to be like you or like me….it's just one of those…things I know,"

"Who will she look like?"

Tsuki glared at him, "I'm not telling you,"

"Why not?"

Tsuki patted her stomach, "I want to keep a secret until she's born,"

"We also need to start thinking of a name as well,"

"I want to give her a nice name. Like Ayame, Mika, or Nozomi…maybe I should name her after my mother? I think that would be nice,"

"I want to name her Shugotenshi,"

"Shugotenshi? Why?"

"I honestly don't know," Akumashugi said with a smile, "I just think its fitting," He then whispered. "They do say that babies are delivered by four angels from heaven to their parents,"

Tsuki smiled and kissed Akumashugi, "Okay, her name will be Shugotenshi, just like her Daddy wanted to,"

"Yes…" Akumashugi said as he rubbed Tsuki's stomach, feeling his unborn child moving around in the womb, "…I get the feeling she is going to be Daddy's little girl…"

"Wake _up_, Sesshoumaru,"

Sesshoumaru groaned as he forced himself to sit up. His head was pounding and he felt the bitter taste of blood in his mouth. He looked around to see where he was: he was inside a room made of stone with a small cot and a tiny window in the upper corner – a prisoner's cell. Sesshoumaru then saw a demon sitting in a chair, looking at him curiously. Upon further inspection, it was a Kitsune with an eye tattooed onto his face.

"How are you?" Sesshoumaru demanded, "Where am I?"

"For now, you shall call me Haru," the Kitsune answered, "and I am one of the many sorcerers of the Yousanjikai. That Rosutokon would have killed you had I not told it to retreat," He then glared at Sesshoumaru. "What were you doing amongst mortals?" He then smirked. "Has the feared and powerful Sesshoumaru grown soft?"

"Never!" Sesshoumaru bitterly spat, "You don't know what's at stake here!"

"To contrast your belief, Sesshoumaru," Haru said. He got from the chair and approached Sesshoumaru with a smile still on his fox face, "the Yousanjikai do not know what is at stake. Within a day, the Jewel of Four Angels shall be willed into existence and destroy all of creation in order to make a new one; unless we prevent such things by using our most powerful weapon… the Rosutokon,"

"Why use the Rosutokon? Why cause them further pain by putting them into a physical body?"

"It is the only way, Sesshoumaru. As we speak, hundreds upon hundreds of sorcerers and enchantresses of the sort put Rosutokon into physical bodies and prepare to send them to the other world before the child being born with burden of the Jewel of Four Angels is born, causing the apocalypse of both worlds,"

Sesshoumaru's brow wrinkled, "How do you know of the other world?"

"We demons are as old as time you say and we know things. Would you believe that there are a thousand more worlds out there, none of them the same? Of course you wouldn't; you've never been there," Haru's smile faded. "But what I must say is that you have taken a liking to these mortals and I do question if we can trust. I know of the girl that carries the child and she is of your blood,"

"No…not fully. The girl is of my half-brother,"

"Blood is thicker than water, I believe is the phrase, Sesshoumaru. You attempt to save that girl and the child, do you not?" Sesshoumaru paused; he hadn't truly thought about what to do next. Haru took his silence as the answer he was looking for and sat back down. "You shall not get your wish. The child must die or we shall,"

The color drained from Sesshoumaru's face, "_What_?"

Haru sighed, "The Rosutokon are being sent in ghostly bodies so that they may penetrate the womb before the child is born and kill it, thus destroying the Jewel of Four Angels,"

"Kill an innocent child?!"

"It is no true effect. The girl will just assume she has miscarried, which does occur,"

"But you'll the blood of infant on your hands! How could you leave such a feeling?!"

"Sesshoumaru, we are doing what we only can do. This is the only way to prevent the ending of the worlds; billions will die in one final instant if this child born. One life must be sacrificed to save many more,"

"There _must_ be another way! The great priestess Kikyo has told me that if we were to create another Jewel of Four Souls, then we could cancel out the power of the Jewel of Four Angels!"

"It would take three days to forge such a powerful jewel and have one! We must kill the child and that is that!"

"_No_! It's…barbaric! I believe in Kikyo's way! We should at least give it a try!"

"And how do you suppose we do that? How do you suppose me someone creature another Jewel of Four Souls within the hours that we have?!"

"We _work_! We force ourselves to strive as hard as we can to create another Jewel!"

Haru paused. He then thought it over. He then looked at Sesshoumaru as he turned to leave for the iron door, "I will discuss it with the Yousanjikai and then we will see, Sesshoumaru…for now, I leave you," And the iron door opened as Haru exited and closed as he left, leaving Sesshoumaru in the darkness.

The drive from the hospital to Sango's house was quiet. Sango got out of the car and looked at Reichou, who seemed shrunken and sick.

"Reichou, honey, aren't you coming out?" Sango asked.

"I…I…" Reichou began.

"We're having a sleepover," Shukuen quickly said. Inu-Yasha twitched a little at the thought of Reichou and Shukuen sleeping at his house in the same room, but tried not show his slight discomfort. Shukuen didn't notice and continued, "Can he stay over please?"

Sango smiled, "Of course he can," She kissed Reichou goodnight and went inside the house.

The trip to the car was still silent. Inu-Yasha felt that he should say something, but he wasn't exactly sure what, so he remained silent. They drove by the park, where the Higurashi shrine once stood – yes, he remembered the day that company bought the shrine and knocked it down and made a park but strangely kept the well in tact. He felt his hair stiffen as he drove by the park and a familiar scent was wafting nearby it.

Kikyo. Kikyo and Rin. Kikyo and Rin in their world.

Inu-Yasha stopped the car.

"Dad…?" Shukuen asked.

"Stay here," Inu-Yasha said as he got out of the car. He then remembered how Reichou and Shukuen had been left out in the hallway alone and the mind boggles at what they can do in a car alone and Inu-Yasha had just finished cleaning the inside from when Shippou got car sick, "On second thought, Shukuen, you come with me," Shukuen did as he was told and stepped out of the car, leaving Reichou alone.

Kikyo was standing nearby the well with a glazed look in her eyes. She had been using her powers to try and contact Inu-Yasha, but it had been difficult to do with the different types of electromagnetic waves in the air.

"Magic has a limited effect here," Inu-Yasha said, "It probably has something to do with the pollution," He then glared at Kikyo. "What are you doing here? And why are you with Rin?"

"It's a long story," Kikyo answered, "and it would possibly be best if we were to discuss it somewhere more appropriate; and not as much in the open,"

Inu-Yasha sighed, "I suppose I could fit you two in my car…"

Rin looked up at him, "What's a car?"

Sesshoumaru laid on the cot in the prisoner cell; it felt like an eternity was passing by him. He was thinking about Kikyo and about Rin; had they made it to the other side? Were they still alive? Had they contacted Inu-Yasha as of yet? He sighed as he looked up towards the small window in the corner of the cell; seeing the moon made him feel a little calmer, but not that much. The iron door creaked loudly and Sesshoumaru sat up as Haru entered; looking disgruntled.

"The Yousanjikai wish to speak with you," Haru huffed. Several demons wearing cloaks with tattooed eyes on their face entered the room. They surrounded Sesshoumaru in a tight semicircle, all looking identical and all looking serious.

"Sesshoumaru, Fullblood Demon Lord," said one of the cloaked demons, "we have considered your words,"

Another cloaked demon spoke, "The blood of an infant is something none of us want and your alternative has given us a way to avoid such guilt and possible vengeance seeken upon us. Tell us of your proposal,"

"The priestess Kikyo," Sesshoumaru said, "has told me of a way to counter the power of the Jewel of Four Angels. If we were to create another Jewel of Four Souls, it would cancel out the power of the Jewel of Four Angels and prevent our world from ruin,"

"And how do you suppose we create another Jewel of Four Souls? "said another cloaked demon.

"Yes, such craft was long ago lost since the original priestess died," said another.

"And the creation of another Jewel of Four Souls could cause more turmoil in this bloody era,"

"Kikyo has told me of how to forge it," Sesshoumaru insisted, "We need four people, mortal or demon that must each represent the four souls – knowledge, courage, purity, and friendship. Then there must be a priestess, a mortal with the sixth sense, and a full blood demon," He then paused. "The four that represent each of the souls are in the other world, though. Kikyo is already there along with my adopted child,"

"So the rumors are true," said one of the cloaked demons, "so Sesshoumaru has gone amongst mortals for comfort and does spend his days with a mortal girl,"

"My business is none of yours," Sesshoumaru growled.

There was low whispering in the cell as the Yousanjikai spoke to each other. After a few minuets, one of them broke the semicircle and approached Sesshoumaru.

"We agree upon it," said the cloaked demon to Sesshoumaru, "that you and two of us shall join Kikyo in the other world and forge this jewel. If this shall fail, then we shall proceed with our plan," The cloaked demon pulled out a dagger and handed it to Sesshoumaru. "Do you swear this pact upon your demon blood, Sesshoumaru?"

Sesshoumaru sliced the palm of his hand with the blade. He felt the wound burn and then suddenly turn icy, "I swear upon this pact with my demon blood,"

The cloaked demon took back the blade and sliced his palm as well, "Then let it be done that I as well swear upon this pact with my demon blood,"

"So let this be done," said several of the cloaked demons in unison, "so says the Yousanjikai,"

At this, all of the cloaked demons left the cell as soon as they had entered, along with Haru. Sesshoumaru could look at the wound on his palm with amazement – a deep scar, discolored with light blue, was already forming.

Kikyo had told Inu-Yasha all of the story by the time they had arrived home. Everyone sat in the living room, pondering over what to do with the chaos that was soon to form.

"This is truly a predicament," Inu-Yasha sighed, "not only is my teenaged daughter pregnant by a demon, but she is also going to have a child that will bring about the end of the worlds," He put his head into his hands. "Kill the child and the save the worlds. Let the child be born and destroy the worlds,"

"It is a battle of wills," Kikyo said, "that is why we must try and recreate the Jewel of Four Souls before it is too late,"

"How long will it be before Tsuki gives birth?" Shukuen asked.

"I fear all too soon," Kikyo sighed.

"…day…" Rin gasped. She was still in shock from the car ride and shaking all over, "…we shall only have a day…and then…then the Jewel of Four Angels shall come…"


	15. Act 15

Thank all of you for the review! (bows) It made me really happy. Only about 2 more chapters before 'Moon and Destiny' ends, my dear friends!

Act 15:

Tsuki groaned and she sat up in the hospital bed. Akumashugi was lying next to her and he felt her stir. His eyes flickered open as he looked at Tsuki. She was groaning and sweating.

"What's wrong?" Akumashugi asked. He then rephrased his question, "Are you having contractions? Did your water break?"

"No…" Tsuki answered, as she clenched her teeth and held onto her stomach, "…no, it…it's _growing_,"

"The fetus must be developing faster than the doctors probably thought," Akumashugi said as he gently touched Tsuki's stomach. He could feel his unborn child moving underneath the skin; more rapidly than before, "Yes, it's moving around. It's coming very close to…it's time," He saw Tsuki's nervous face and he held her close. "It's okay, love, everything is going to be alright,"

Tsuki held onto Akumashugi as well, but she still cried a little. She had heard about how much it hurt to give birth.

Everything had grown quiet in the Higurashi home after one o' clock. Shukuen and Reichou were up in their room (with Inu-Yasha checking them every few minuets to make sure things were okay) and Kikyo and Rin were sleeping on the couch. Still, Inu-Yasha was the only restless one in the house. He made himself some coffee and stared out the family room window for a while and looked at the other houses. He thought about the thousands of other families in Tokyo. He thought about how easy their lives were. He thought about how they didn't have a pregnant teen daughter; how they didn't have a homosexual son to deal with; how they didn't have to realize that their grandchild would possibly be a full blood demon…

"Inu-Yasha,"

Inu-Yasha turned around a little and at first glance, he thought it was Kagome, only to see that it was Kikyo. He then turned back around. He had to remember that their relationship was over. He was married now; he had a wife; he had children; he had a child that was about to have a child…

"Inu-Yasha," Kikyo said, "what's wrong? You seem…distracted,"

"It's nothing," Inu-Yasha answered.

"I see…" Kikyo said, knowing that he was lying, "…something is on your mind. Why won't you speak to me? I know, you and Kagome are married now and have children as well, but that does not mean we cannot be friends,"

Inu-Yasha changed the subject, "Why were you with Sesshoumaru all that time?"

Kikyo stiffened, "…we…" She then looked away. "…he's an associate…"

Inu-Yasha snorted as he took a sip of his coffee, "You're lying. You're sleeping with him,"

Kikyo glared at him, "It's not what you think,"

"It _is_ what I think," Inu-Yasha answered, "and you've been sleeping with him for a very long time from what I can tell,"

Kikyo's face hardened, "How can you tell? I don't have his scent,"

Inu-Yasha smirked, "Your skin," Kikyo answered him with a blank face and Inu-Yasha explained, "You have claw marks on your skin from him caressing you. Kagome has the same thing," He gestured towards a long claw mark starting on Kikyo's neck. "It happens often when demons have sex. There is a little bit of blood involved, but you know all about demons, don't you, Kikyo? Tell me, are you going to bear his child, or are you just going to leech off of his power?"

Kikyo glared at Inu-Yasha and headed towards the living room exit. She then hissed, "You know I can't have children because I am resurrected,"

Inu-Yasha just took another sip of coffee.

He tried so hard to breathe. But every breathe was laborious and burning him. He tried to swallow, but that was painful too. Everything was painful. He had truly gone into a world of pain; as if he had been thrown into the depths of hell. He heard a nurse enter the room and she opened his arm and plugged it with something. Nutrients. He was having nutrients put into his blood steam. The nurse looked at him with sad eyes.

"Poor thing," the nurse sighed, "you must be hurting all over," She glanced at his fox ears. "What a wonder you are, Mr. Shippou. Your parents just called and they're going to try and keep you alive for as long as possible. Poor thing. If it wasn't for hospital regulations, I would've unplugged you myself," A single tear came from her eyes and she had to leave the room.

Shippou breathed again, still in pain. He twitched one of his arms, but it was also painful to move. He decided it was hopeless to try and move around. For now, he would just think. He would think about that first smoke he took. He thought about that first drink he took. He thought about that first girl he slept with and told her to get out in the morning. That's all he could do now was think and be a vegetable. One of these days, he would write a book (or get someone to write it for him; maybe that wimp Shukuen he could boss around a bit). _The Rise and Fall of Shippou, the greatest Kitsune to ever walk this damn world._

Yeah, that was a great title for the greatest Kitsune ever. Shippou laughed a little, only to recoil in pain.

Shukuen let out a sigh as he nudged Reichou a little. They were sleeping the same bed, it was late at night, the atmosphere was great, but they weren't doing anything. Reichou was attempting to sleep, but he was too nervous and Shukuen was trying to sleep, but he was feeling too alive.

"Reichou…" Shukuen whispered into his ear. Reichou tried not to respond; he remembered the look on their father's faces. Shukuen nipped his ear and urged him, "**Reichou**,"

"Shukuen…" Reichou began. Shukuen wrapped his arms around Reichou's waist tightly as he kissed his neck, "…Shukuen, your Dad is in the house…he's probably watching us…after what happened in the hallway…"

"I don't _care_…" Shukuen groaned, "…I want to make out or _something_…"

Reichou moved out of bed and away from Shukuen. Shukuen was growling, seeing his prize slip away from him. Reichou saw the disgruntled look at Shukuen's face and also noticed that Shukuen's hair was starting to turn silver.

"Shukuen, you need to calm down," Reichou said, slowly and calmly, "Your hormones are through the roof right now. I think that we should just sit here and maybe talk and then–"

Reichou didn't have a chance a finish, because at this moment Shukuen tackled him, growling fiercely as he began to rip off Reichou's pants.

Sesshoumaru was brought to circular room. The air was thick with incense and all sorts of heat. By his side were two cloaked demons. In the center of the room was a large hole in the ground. Standing in front of the hole was another cloaked demon.

"These two shall be accompanying you," said the cloaked demon, "their names are Hoshimori and Takeyama. They are a little…different than us though,"

"Different?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"You see, Hoshimori and Takeyama used to be part of a great oni called Hoshiyama. Over the years, he had grown far too powerful and tried to turn against us. We tried to kill him, but he had gained immortality somehow, so our best sorcerer took and separated him into a yin and a yang part – Hoshimori and Takeyama. They are separate bodies, but they still act as whole.

The cloaked demon then changed the subject, "They will assist you as much as possible and keep you in contact with the Yousanjikai on the other side," He took out his blade from before and made a triangle with the tip of it in the air. "May part of us Yousanjikai succeed in this; and let our blood be cursed if we fail this and shame this covenant,"

"May we succeed and bring honor to the covenant, so says the Yousanjikai," several of the cloaked demons uttered together.

Sesshoumaru felt the air grow thick with incense as several demons began to chant all together. The chanting filled the room and surrounded Hoshimori, Takeyama, and him. It was so loud that it could have knocked down the walls of the room. The hole in the center of the room began to fill with light and there was a loud crackling noise as the hole grew brighter and brighter. The chanting continued and Hoshimori and Takeyama stepped towards the hole with Sesshoumaru.

"Do we…jump?" Sesshoumaru muttered. There was no answer as Hoshimori pushed Sesshoumaru into the hole of light.

"Mom," Tsuki called. No answer. Her mother was fast asleep in the chair. Akumashugi was lying in bed next to Tsuki, sleeping as well. Tsuki sighed, feeling alone as she touched her moving stomach. She closed her eyes and tried to think of how her child would look, but couldn't. No, she would have to wait. She would have to wait until it was time and Tsuki was getting the feeling that that faithful time would be soon.

Akumashugi moved around a little and looked at Tsuki. "How are you?" He said, half awake.

"Fine," Tsuki sighed.

"Don't lie," Akumashugi answered as he sat up and rubbed his eyes, "You're nervous. I can tell. Come on. We need to leave,"

"Leave? Why?" Tsuki asked.

Akumashugi got off the bed, "You can't possibly think you're going to give birth here, are you?"

"Where do you _expect_ it to happen?" Tsuki growled, "The field!"

"You and I _both_ know," Akumashugi answered with a sigh, "That you can't have the baby in such a …_place_,"

Tsuki looked at Akumashugi, "Yeah…I know I have to go down to the delivery level of the hospital when the time comes,"

Akumashugi shook his head, "The _hospital_, I mean,"

"What? You can't expect me to _not_ have the baby in the hospital!"

Akumashugi looked at Tsuki, straight into the eyes, "Tsuki – _listen_," He then dropped his voice to a whisper. "I am a full blood demon. You have only less than a quarter of human blood in you, the rest of it is demon. This child will be by no means human. These doctors…" He put his hand cautiously on Tsuki's stomach. "…will see that and they may try to kill it. Do you understand? We can't have you have the child here. You need to have the baby somewhere more…obscure from the public's view,"

Tsuki paused, "I guess you're right. I remember when I was born, the doctor thought I was deformed because of my ears. But where would we go, Akumashugi?"

"I know the perfect place," Akumashugi said, "Hold onto me,"

Tsuki bit her lip, "…okay,"

Tsuki held onto Akumashugi and they disappeared out of the hospital within a few minuets, only leaving a puff of smoke.

Kikyo shook Rin awake. Rin stirred only a little and looked up at the woman. Rin had grow frail and afraid in the past hours; she was scared of everything around her in the other world. She was still shaking all over.

"Rin, I need you to do something for me," Kikyo said.

"Yes…?" Rin asked quietly.

"I know you have the second sight," Kikyo said, "and it is the most powerful gift, but have you ever attempted a technique known as dousing?"

"Dousing?"

"It is fairly hard, but I think you have an unusual amount of psychic powers for your age, possibly from being around Sesshoumaru all the time, and I believe you can do it, or attempt it tat the least. It is a fairly simple thing in which you take your mind and reach out to selected others, trying to locate them,"

Rin nodded, "I'll try my best,"

"I need you to locate the souls that belong to Shippou and Tsuki. They are the only two of the four that we need to make the Jewel of Four Souls,"

Rin nodded again. She concentrated as hard as possible and soon her eyes rolled back up into her head and she began to go into a trance.

"Rin!" Kikyo called, "Rin! Can you hear me?"

"_Tsuki's soul…the soul is…far away…too far away…can't find…can't locate…but Shippou…Shippou's soul…Shippou's soul is…is….leaving!_" Rin rasped in her trance, _"His soul is…leaving him! He's dying! He'll die!"_

Kikyo muttered a curse, "Rin! I need you to drive into Shippou's mind and try to bring him back from death!"

Rin groaned as her body jolted and she rolled all over the couch she was resting on. She let out an unearthly yell as her body convulsed, urging her to stop, _"tsuki! tsuki! tsuki i'm so worried about you! how could you have done this to yourself, tsuki! it's my fault! it's my fault! it's my fault! that should be me, not you! not you, tsuki!"_

Kikyo sighed as she tried to keep Rin calm, "Okay, Rin, you're inside of his mind. Now, Rin, you have to help him. You have to save Shippou or we'll all die,"

Inu-Yasha was having trouble sleeping. He wasn't used to be sleeping all alone ever since he had married Kagome (except that one time he said she looked fat when she was pregnant with Shukuen and she made him sleep in the basement). He rolled over onto his side in bed just as some noises came from Shukuen's room.

The noises were coming from Shukuen and Reichou. Shukuen was moaning and Reichou yelled out something. Inu-Yasha put the pillow over his head – he didn't have time to think about this. He didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to consider the thought of what his son and another boy were doing in the next room. The noises continued for a little while longer and soon died down. Inu-Yasha sighed.

Everything was going too fast. Far too fast. Tsuki would give birth. The father of his grandchild was a demon, who Kikyo said was the son of Naraku. It made Inu-Yasha shiver to think that Naraku and him were tied together by blood. There was no escaping such a bond.

Even after his death, Naraku was tormenting him.

Shippou's breaths were small and they burned as he sucked in air, but he was struggling now. He had to hold on…he had to hold on just a little bit longer, but then, he remembered Tsuki. He remembered that sweet little girl he had fallen in love with when he was younger. And now he remembered Tsuki, heavy with child, and bound to grow up a teenaged parent to a demon child. It wasn't her fate…it wasn't what she deserved…it was what he deserved…he was a worthless Kitsune with no true past or future…

…Shippou drifted down into the darkness as he closed his eyes. He drifted through the darkness of his mind, trying to find the bottom of the pit just so that he could close his eyes and remain there for all eternity. It had seemed to be hours before he found the bottom of the pit. He laid on the bottom and felt his eyelids grow heavy.

_Shippou…_

He scrunched his eyelids shut. He didn't want to be bothered.

_**Shippou**…_

He held them closed.

_SHIPPOU…_

Shippou sat up as he looked around in the darkness, _'Who's there?' _ The darkness began to fall apart as someone floated down towards Shippou. It was a girl about Shippou's age, with long black hair and she wore a red and yellow kimono. She was glowing brightly, like a little angel.

_You cannot die yet Shippou._ The girl answered, _You have a hand in the prophecy and we need you to live or many will die. Thousands upon thousands. You must live so that others may if. If you die, others will die. It is a chain, Shippou, and you are a link in the chain. _

Shippou glared at the girl, _'Who are you and why do you need me so much?'_

_My name is…Rin._ The girl answered, _And I need you to prevent the destruction of our worlds and stop the power of the Jewel of Four Angels. _

Shippou paused, _'The doctors say I'm done for. How can YOU possibly keep me alive?'_

_Your soul is fleeting you, but I can help. I can install a mental block in your mind to keep some of your soul there in you. It will not be all of it, but it will be enough to keep you alive. You maybe a little...disabled though since you don't have all your soul._

Shippou smiled, _'Anything to stay alive. Do it,'_

_As you wish. This may hurt. _

'_It hurts for me to move, even to breathe. This'll be nothing,'_

The darkness shook and Shippou felt his skin prickle as something shocked him. He yelped in pain and crumpled onto the pit, as still as ever.

Reichou only woke up a few hours later. Was it all a dream? Was what Shukuen did a dream? Reichou sat up and tried to move out of bed, only to find that his hips were hurting too much for him to walk. He looked around and realized he was naked. He then turned a little and glanced around the room. Everything appeared normal – except for one thing.

Shukuen was naked and they had been sharing a bed.

Reichou paused as some truths began to come to him: last night was not a dream, it was reality and it was truly a nightmare. He winced as he rubbed one of the claw marks left on him by Shukuen. He remembered as clear as day what had happened last night. He remembered Shukuen being all normal and okay, then all of a sudden he changed.

Shukuen's hair turned silver, he grew dog ears, and he grew claws – he had become a demon as he tackled Reichou and had his way with him. Reichou even remembered the terrible pain as Shukuen ravished him and he remembered the bleeding claw marks he made in his flesh as he moaned in pain.

Reichou couldn't do anything. Go tell his father? No way. Go tell his mother? Not even she would talk to him if he told her. Go tell an adult? They'd just treat him strangely. Go tell the police? They'd call him names and probably try to chase him out of town.

Reichou had no one to tell. Reichou was alone and all he could do now was cry. So, Reichou cried as silently as he could, so that no one would know.

The air was still chilly on the morning, so Akumashugi put his outer kimono over Tsuki to keep her warm. The cold didn't bother him. Tsuki looked around the area she had been brought to. It was some sort of forest, but it didn't look familiar to her. She looked around as she tried to identify the area.

"Where are we?" Tsuki breathed.

"There is a cabin nearby," Akumashugi answered, changing the subject, "you should lay down and rest. I don't want you on your feet too much, Tsuki," Tsuki touched her stomach as she felt pains starting to come from it. It was growing gain. Akumashugi saw her discomfort and made a face. "See? You're having pains already. Are you sure you're not having contractions or anything?"

"No, I'm okay," Tsuki answered, "it's just that the womb is growing again,"

"I'm not buying it," Akumashugi said. He pointed to a cottage on a small hill some feet away from them, "We need to get there. Let me carry you,"

"I'll be fine," Tsuki replied.

"No deal," Akumashugi answered as he picked Tsuki up from the ground, "I'm carrying you. As soon as we get to the cabin, I'll get you some food. You're probably just hungry,"

"But I feel fine!" Tsuki protested. She then winced from the growing pain in her belly.

Akumashugi continued carrying her, "I'm carrying you and that's that. You need to lie down and rest right now,"

Tsuki grumbled, seeing that there was no way she could win the argument. Akumashugi carried her the entire way to the cabin. The door was unlocked. The inside of the cabin was small and a little dusty, but it was still a good place to rest. Akumashugi gently placed Tsuki on the bed and then went to the fireplace, lighting the fire.

"Akumashugi…" Tsuki began.

"Yes?" Akumashugi answered.

"…what will happen if I go into labor here?" Tsuki asked.

'_And that's exactly what I'm counting on. The Yousanjikai are here. I can sense it,'_ Akumashugi thought. He then turned to Tsuki, "Don't worry. If you go into labor, I'll deliver the baby,"

Tsuki looked at him, "Do you know how?"

"When you passed out in the hospital," Akumashugi answered, "you were alone in the room for a while and in the waiting room I found a pamphlet for pregnancy and such. It told me all I needed to know," He then got up from the fireplace and went to Tsuki's side. "I'll go get you something to eat. I'm putting up a barrier around the cabin so that no one will know you're here and come,"

Tsuki made a face, "You're leaving me here alone?"

"Only for a few minuets," Akumashugi answered, "and you're perfectly safe with the barrier up. You need to eat, Tsuki; you're feeding two now,"

Tsuki sighed, "…oh…okay then…"

Akumashugi kissed her and then teleported away.

The sound of cars honking and the sirens of police cars made Sesshoumaru nervous. He wasn't used to such strange, loud, noise, such bright flashing lights, and so many strange fumes in the air! Hoshimori and Takeyama were not phased as they climbed out of the well.

"We must go," Takeyama said to Sesshoumaru.

"Go where in this chaos?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"We sense that we must rejoin with this priestess Kikyo you have spoken of in the past," Hoshimori answered, "and we must hurry,"

"Yes, we are right," Takeyama added, "We only have a few minuets before the time of the Jewel of Four Angels,"

"Why must you speak so strangely?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"We are part of the Yousanjikai," Takeyama said, "We are cells in the body of the Yousanjikai,"

"And as I am him," Hoshimori answered, "He is I,"

"As I am with him, he is with I," Takeyama said, "For we are the Yousanjikai and we are as one in it's body,"

Sesshoumaru blinked as he processed this information, "…are you trying to tell me that you are…homosexual?"

Hoshimori and Takeyama paused. They curiously looked at each other for a few seconds and then looked back at Sesshoumaru.

"We do not know," Hoshimori answered.

"We may believe so," Takeyama answered, "but we are not sure,"

Sesshoumaru sighed, "It is of no matter. Where is the priestess Kikyo?"

"She is near," Takeyama said, after pausing.

"So let us leave then," Sesshoumaru said.

"Follow us," Hoshimori said.

Rin was gasping for air by the time Kikyo pulled her out of the trance. It had taken Kikyo a lot of energy to do the job.

"Well?" Kikyo asked as soon as Rin came too, "How did it go?"

"He is alive…he is well…" Rin gasped. She then looked at Kikyo, "…and he is handsome as well,"

The machine in the hospital began to beep as Shippou violently tossed and turned. The nurses came rushing in only to find that the Kitsune boy had sat up in bed and take out all the plugs and wires in him with grunts and groans of pain. The doctors and nurses stood in shock as Shippou crawled off the bed.

"It…" a nurse said; the same one that had come to Shippou from before, "…it's a miracle!"

"God be praised," muttered a doctor, "God be praised; his work has been done here,"

Shippou moved from the bed and walked towards the door. He opened his mouth and tired to speak, but only gurgles came out. Shippou tried to force out words, but nothing came out. It was as if he was an infant again and hadn't mastered the technique of speaking as of yet. The doctors and nurses looked concerned seeing that Shippou could no longer speak and tried to help him, but Shippou angrily pushed them away.

'_Damn that witch,'_ Shippou thought, _'I knew she said I would be disabled but I didn't know it would be like this! Damn!' _The doctor brought out an syringe and some nurses went to try and hold down Shippou. Shippou knocked them away and made a dash for the door. _'At least I can still run!'_

Shippou kept on running through the hospital and eventually found an empty wheelchair and jumped into it and was soon rolling out of the hospital and out the doorway of it.

Kagome woke up to a commotion in the hallways. The door was cracked open a little. She sleepily got up from the chair: what time was it? She glanced at the clock on the wall to see that it was six in the morning. She went to the doorway and peeked out to see what was going on. She saw Shippou zooming down the hallway in a wheelchair. A few seconds after that, she saw some doctors and nurses chasing him.

Kagome was overjoyed: Shippou was himself again! She had to call Sango and tell her. Kagome turned around to get her cell phone in her bag when she saw the empty hospital bed and no trace of Tsuki or Akumashugi. Kagome didn't know what to do but she knew one thing was true: Tsuki was gone and she probably with Akumashugi.


	16. Act 16

A little note about the writing: I forgot the name of Sango's weapon, so for now it'll just be called "boomerang". Ah, we creatrixes and our short term memories. Anyways, it would be nice if someone told me because I know it's now called "boomerang". Unless Sango's Australia! 0 O

Sango: G'day, mate!

Errrrm...on with the fic!

Act 16:

Sango couldn't sleep. Something was troubling her. As soon as she had gotten home, Miroku hadn't spoken a single word to her about Reichou or anything. He had been in a dark mood the entire time. The purplish light of dawn was peeking through the window. Sango sighed as she turned on the bedroom light.

"Miroku," Sango said. Miroku didn't reply, but Sango knew he was awake, "Miroku, we need to talk about something," Miroku stirred only a little. "Miroku, I'm worried about Reichou,"

"He's fine, Sango," Miroku answered.

"No! Something is _wrong_, Miroku! You always tell me that everything is alright so that I won't get worried, but I can _feel_ that something is wrong!" Sango yelled. She then calmed down and sighed, "Did you see that bruise on his eye, Miroku?"

"He just fell, Sango," Miroku answered, "It happens all the time,"

"No, it wasn't just a falling bruise. How did he hit his head?"

Miroku sat up and glared at Sango, "Gym class,"

"Gym class?"

"Yes. He told me that he got hit with the ball during gym,"

Sango folded her arms, "He got hit with a ball?"

"Yes,"

"During gym class?"

"Yes,"

"At school?"

"Yes. Now can we please go back to sleep,"

"_No_," Sango said firmly. She then got out of bed, "You're lying, Miroku,"

"Sango–" Miroku began.

"I know Reichou's school schedule. He didn't have Gym schedule yesterday and even if he did, I would have noticed the bruise when he got home," Sango huffed, "You're keeping the truth from me. I know what happened – someone is hitting him, aren't they, Miroku?"

Miroku got up from the bed, "Sango, Reichou is fine. I assure you,"

"_You_," Sango snarled, "You're the one that did that to him! "

"Sango–" Miroku growled.

"I knew there had been trouble as soon as I heard Reichou yell! I knew you were doing something to him!" Sango yelled, "I should have know! You were once a lecher and now you're an abusive father! I should have know scum like you never change!"

"Sango, I–" Miroku began.

"I don't want to hear it!" Sango yelled, "I want you to get out of my house!"

"Sango, listen to me–" Miroku began.

"Get out!"

"Sango, please listen–"

"_Get out!_"

"Sango–"

"**_GET OUT!_**"

Tsuki felt her stomach move a little. She put her fingers over her swollen stomach. She could still feel the child moving underneath the skin. She felt so many emotions as she felt it move: the fear of going into labor, the wonder of having a child, the honor of having Akumashugi by her side, the shame that she would never be able to return to school, the curiosity of what kind of child this would be…and a hundred more emotions she couldn't describe. Akumashugi had left some hours ago to go forage for food and had put up a barrier around the cabin.

A few minuets later, the door opened. Tsuki tried to sit up, but it was difficult with her stomach in the way. Akumashugi entered with several dead rabbits and some vegetables. He held up the rabbit proudly and forced a smile, "Found them nearby a ravine somewhere. There's plenty of game here," He then kicked the door closed as he settled nearby the fire and took out his knife, starting to skin the rabbits. "This would be a nice place to live,"

"It's too remote," Tsuki said, "I would feel better if we were near civilization. What if something happens? It would take days for help to come,"

"Nothing will happen," Akumashugi answered, "I still have the barrier up. We're safe," He turned to Tsuki. "How are you feeling? Is it time yet?"

"No," Tsuki sighed, "not yet,"

Akumashugi sighed. "How much longer do you think it will be?"

"It's going to happen soon," Tsuki explained, "Just…just not right now,"

Akumashugi sighed again and continued skinning the rabbit, "Alright them. Just long as it's soon,"

Tsuki looked at him, "Why soon?"

Akumashugi stiffened, "It's nothing. I just don't want us to stay isolated for long,"

Tsuki sighed and laid back down onto the bed – she could feel the life stirring inside of her and she knew deep down inside of her heart that Akumashugi was keeping the truth from her.

Reichou grunted as he moved out of bed; his hips aching in pain. He felt the claw marks on his body begin to swell and he had to hold onto the wall to support himself. Shukuen stirred only a little, but Reichou swore his heart skipped a beat. His best friend ever since they were 5 was now terrorizing him as he slept – it almost made Reichou want to vomit from the feeling, the thought…but what happened last night shook the ground Reichou stood on. It made him question everything. It made him question if Shukuen was truly as innocent as he seemed. It made him question whether Shukuen was really a wolf in sheep's clothing – using that sweet, girlish, look as a distraction so that when the time came he could pounce on and ravish boys like Reichou.

Reichou suddenly felt dizzy as he collapsed onto the floor. He was still aching all over from last night. He couldn't believe how rough Shukuen had been with him. He couldn't' believe that despite the fact he was pleading and begging, Shukuen continued. Shukuen kept on continuing until he was satisfied. Reichou curled up into a fetal position as he studied the claw marks Shukuen had made on his arm. Shukuen stirred again in bed and Reichou gulped. Shukuen finally sat up after moving around in his sleep for a little and looked around.

"…what…what happened?" Shukuen muttered as he rubbed his eyes.

Reichou was shivering as he looked up at Shukuen. He knew that this was ridiculous, that Shukuen was his friend, but he was too afraid. All he remembered now was the demonic look in Shukuen's eyes and the feeling as Shukuen forced himself.

Shukuen looked at Reichou, "What's wrong, Reichou? Are you sick or something?" Reichou couldn't reply. He was too busy shaking. Finally, he began to cry again. Shukuen didn't know what was going on. He then realized that both Reichou and him were nude and he also noticed the claw marks on Reichou's delicate body. "Reichou, what's wrong? Did something happen?"

Shukuen ran over to Reichou's side and tried to comfort him, but Reichou shrunk away from the touch. Shukuen tried to examine one of Reichou's claw marks, but Reichou moved away from him as soon as he tried to touch him. Reichou eventually backed into the corner of the room and continued to cry.

"Reichou…?" Shukuen asked.

No answer; Reichou had his head down and hidden.

"Reichou, what's wrong?" Shukuen asked again.

No answer.

"Reichou? Can't you tell me what's wrong?"

No answer.

Inu-Yasha was thankful the telephone rang – dissolving his nightmare. Ever since his life had gone to hell, he had been having nothing but nightmares. He went downstairs and to the kitchen, picking the telephone up.

"Higurashi Residence. Why the hell are you calling at eight in the morning?" Inu-Yasha said.

_Inu-Yasha, it's me _Kagome said. There was static in the background, so she was using her telephone.

"Kagome? What's wrong?" Inu-Yasha asked. He then paused, "Did Tsuki go into labor?"

Kagome started to cry over the phone, _She's gone _

"…gone?"

_She's gone! I fell asleep for a little while and when I woke up Akumashugi and her were just gone! No note, no nothing! They had just disappeared! I don't know where they could be but I'm worried about them! The gynecologist said that at the rate Tsuki is going, she might have the baby within a day _

Inu-Yasha clenched his fist, making marks into his palm, "Damn it,"

_What should we do, Inu-Yasha? I…I just…I just don't... _

Inu-Yasha sighed, "I…I'll go look for her. I can use my scent to find her. Just calm down and come home," He then remembered something. "Oh, and Kikyo and Rin are here,"

_WHAT! YOU LET THAT UNDEAD TRAMP IN MY HOUSE _

"Not so loud; she might hear you, Kagome. She says it's important; something about the end of the world and such,"

Kagome then muttered something, _…Shippou… _

"Shippou? Is he okay?"

_He's fine. He's better than okay. He just flew out of the hospital on a stolen wheelchair _Kagome said.

"WHAT! HE'S ALIVE!"

_I'll explain later! I'll be at the house in 20 minuets _

Kagome then hung up. Inu-Yasha sighed as he rubbed his temples – everything was going far too fast for him.

Hoshimori looked around. He then looked at Takeyama and he nodded in reply. Takeyama then turned to Sesshoumaru, "We have arrived,"

"This is the place?" Sesshoumaru asked.

Hoshimori nodded, "Yes, this is the house. This is where the aura is coming from. This is where we must go,"

Sesshoumaru looked up at the two level house painted sky blue with a light grey roof. It was a fairly large house. He then saw a familiar face looking at him through one of the windows of the house: Rin. Rin saw Sesshoumaru and came running out of the house and embraced him in a tight hug.

"Father!" Rin cried, "You've returned!"

"Yes, I have," Sesshoumaru said, "but not for long," Kikyo suddenly stepped out of the house and Sesshoumaru took Rin out of his arms and put Kikyo in them instead. "I have missed you for days, Kikyo. I often questioned your safety when I could not be there to protect you,"

"We are not here to socialize," Takeyama spoke.

"Or play the romantic," Hoshimori added.

Kikyo sighed as she stroked Sesshoumaru's cheek, "I'm afraid they're right. We must try to forge the Jewel of Four Souls before it's too late,"

"Sesshoumaru, what an unpleasant surprise this is,"

Sesshoumaru looked up to see his younger half-brother Inu-Yasha standing at the doorway. He held onto Kikyo even tighter. "This is no time to fight, Inu-Yasha," Sesshoumaru stated, "There is far more at stake. I no longer have the will to fight with you,"

"And neither do I," Inu-Yasha stated, "We have grown up and times are changing," He then looked at Kikyo. "What must we do to ensure that our worlds not fall apart at the seams?"

"We must prepare," Kikyo answered quietly, "I will several herbs…"

Shippou could have normally called for a taxi, but since his tongue was currently out of order, he just kept on rolling in the wheelchair. The doctor kept on pursuing him until he had made his way out of the hospital zone. Shippou continued on the wheelchair until he came to the park nearby home. Now came the decision: go home or go to the Higurashi place? This was deciding point. He could go home to annoyance, Sango's crying, and Miroku's anger, or go to the Higurashi and have friendship and a place to be away from his obnoxious parental guardians.

Suddenly, a car came rolling down the street. It parked right nearby him and the window rolled down. It was Kagome, looking frantic and heavily worried – her usual parenting face.

"Shippou! Get in!" Kagome said. Shippou did as he was told and entered the backseat of the car. His legs were still a little weak from running and he had to lay down. He was beginning to feel nauseated, "Sango will be overjoyed to see you up and again!" Kagome said as she drove the car, "How are you feeling?"

Shippou tried to force out words, but it wasn't working, "…agh…aggle…agck…aggr…"

The color drained from Kagome's face, "My God! I heard about things like this on the news! Someone goes into a coma and they forget how to do certain things – like speech and such!"

Shippou tried to trply, "….errrgh…eeerrrrhhhhh…eeeeggggrrrrrh..."

"Rest a little bit," Kagome said to Shippou, "you shouldn't try to talk. Give yourself a little time to heal. Let's hope it's not permanent,"

"…laaaarrrrgggg….laaaaagggghhhhh…..laaaaaaaggggg…." Shippou murmed.

Tsuki felt herself waking up to another kicking sensation in her stomach. Akumashugi had forced her to try and get a little rest after eating. He had to lay down in bed next to her so that she would feel more comfortable. But Tsuki didn't feel any easier about sleeping. There were too many problems going on – rolling through her head on the smooth surface of her mind.

"…Tsuki…" Akumashugi muttered as he moved a little; half awake, half dreaming, "…Tsuki, you need…to…sleep…"

Tsuki sighed, "I guess I'm having a little insomnia,"

Akumashugi sighed as he sat up, rubbing his temples. His head was pounding, "Tsuki, you need to get some rest. You haven't been getting good sleep lately and that causes stress, which is bad for the baby,"

"Everything's bad for the baby," Tsuki grumbled.

Akumashugi kissed her and patted her on the head, "Relax, love. It'll only be a little while longer, but I want you get some rest. Being stressed during pregnancy doesn't make anything better," Tsuki grumbled again and pulled the blanket over her head. Akumashugi could see how upset she was and put his arms around. "It's okay, love, it's okay. It'll only be a little while longer,"

Tsuki sighed, but as soon as the kicking stopped – she was fast asleep.

Shukuen had decided that his efforts to make Reichou feel any better were going to be futile. Eventually, Reichou got off the floor, still sniffling, and slowly put his clothes back; still not looking at Shukuen. Shukuen could sit on the bed and feel guilty – as if he was responsible for Reichou's misery. Reichou then exited the room silently.

Reichou did his best to walk, but every spent ached in his hips. Eventually, he made it downstairs: only to see the crow forming in the front. he then crept towards the back door and left, his hips still hurting him. Reichou didn't stop and sit down until he was a few feet away from his house. He whimpered in pain as he forced himself to get back up after sitting down for 20 minuets. Reichou got closer to the house and he could hear another noise: yelling.

His mother yelling at his father.

Reichou froze in his tracks as he saw his father stomping angrily out of the house, suitcases in hand. His mother was standing at the doorway, yelling at his father.

"LEAVE! DON'T YOU DARE TRY TO COME BACK HERE!" his mother yelled.

"SHUT UP!" his father yelled back, "YOU'RE SUCH A BITCH, SANGO! ALL YOU EVER DID WAS LEECH OFF OF THE MONEY I MADE!"

Reichou felt himself shake as his parents continued yelling – not even taking notice that their son was standing only a foot away from them. Eventually, a taxicab pulled up to the house and his father yanked open the door, tossing his baggage in. His father then cursed his mother a few more times and then entered the taxi, slamming the door behind him: disappearing within the dark tint windows of the taxi.

Reichou just stood and looked on.

Reichou looked on as he saw his mother burst into tears and run back into the house.

Reichou looked on as he saw the taxi containing his father drive away.

Reichou looked on as he saw his life slowly begin to unravel.

Kagome had pulled up into the driveway. Inu-Yasha stiffened as he saw the car: he knew how much Kagome hated Kikyo, but Sesshoumaru's presence would cause further problems. Kagome exited from the car, acting as a support to help Shippou walk. Shippou had a dazed look in his eyes and was muttered some sort of gibberish.

"Shippou!" Kikyo said.

"…naaaagggghhh….snnnnaaaarrrrrnnnn….luuuuuurrrrhhhh….." Shippou gurgled.

"What's wrong with him?" Inu-Yasha asked as Kagome gently handed him Shippou. Inu-Yasha carried Shippou into the living room and laid him on the couch.

"I'm afraid he's having a little trouble talking," Kagome answered, "Things like this happen to people who go into comas,"

"I'm sorry," a tiny voice said. Kagome and Inu-Yasha turned around to find that Rin was standing nearby. Tears began to form in Rin's eyes as she spoke, "I'm so sorry. His soul was leaving to the Other Side and I couldn't being it all back. Most of it had already gone. He doesn't have enough soul to work properly. He's like a broken toy. I'm sorry I couldn't bring all of his soul back. I'm so sorry,"

"It's okay, Rin," Kikyo said, stepping into the room, "bringing someone's soul back from the Other Side takes years and years of skill and you're only 13. It is a deadly thing to do,"

"Hello, Kikyo," Kagome said, icily.

"This is not the time to fight, Kagome," Kikyo stated, "we have been fighting for years and I've grown tired of our bickering. We must set aside our differences and protect this world, or we will all perish and thousands of other with us,"

Kagome folded her arms, "So what are you suggesting, Kikyo? That we somehow magically conjure up some powers like you? I've been living here far too long…I've forgotten every little spell and chant I learned in Sengoku-no-Jidai years ago, the Tetsaiga hasn't been used for years, Sango's boomerang broke on the day we fought Naraku…"

"…Kirara went back to the wild and Miroku wouldn't be a good ally at the moment," Inu-Yasha added, "We have no weapons and we haven't used our powers in years. How can we be of any sort of help?"

Kikyo sighed, "All I need is a little time to prepare the spells and the materials and the people. That is all I need,"

"We shall assist you," Hoshimori said.

"What do you need?" Takeyama said.

"Who are you two?" Kikyo asked.

"Twin demons," Sesshoumaru said, stepping into the room, "from the Yousanjikai,"

A few minuets after all of the yelling and after his mother ran into the house crying – Reichou moved towards the doorway. He saw his mother lying on the couch, crying bitter tears. Reichou didn't know what to do: he would have normally tried to figure out a way to keep her from crying, but this was different. Everything was different. He didn't know how to bring back his father or find a way to make him take back those words.

He just stood there.

He just stood there watching his mother cry.

Sango finally looked up the couch and saw Reichou. She sniffled through her tears, "…oh…oh, Reichou…"

"Mom…what's wrong?" Reichou asked, "What's going on?"

Sango sniffed and wiped away the tears, "It's nothing, Reichou. Nothing's going on,"

Reichou bit his lip, "Mom…I saw…everything. Something is going on, Mom. Are…are…Dad and you…going to get…a divorce?"

Sango sighed, "I don't know, Reichou. Your father and I are just going through a bit of a rough patch," She then stood up and embraced Reichou. "I'm so sorry he hit you, Reichou. I should have known that when I heard you yell something was wrong. I'm so sorry,"

"It's not your fault, Mom," Reichou answered as he hugged her back. He then thought to himself, _'It's all mine…for being too weak…'_

Tsuki woke up again, but not to kicking at the moment – but because she was feeling uneasy. Akumashugi was still sleeping. He had seemed even more stressed than her at the moment. Tsuki got out of bed and went to the window just in time to see the sun set over the distant treetops. She thought about how long she had been away from home and wondered how worried her parents were about her.

Akumashugi stirred in his sleep and then rolled onto his side. He then sat up and looked at Tsuki, "What are you doing up?"

"I was just…thinking," Tsuki answered.

"Thinking about what?" Akumashugi asked.

Tsuki paused, "…nothing…" She felt the child begin to stir again, but even more rapidly than last time. Pains suddenly came from her stomach and Tsuki gasped and collapsed onto the ground.

"_Tsuki_!" Akumashugi yelled as he ran to her side.

Tsuki groaned as she held onto her stomach, "Aku…ma…shu…" Tsuki then let out a groan of pain and clutched onto her stomach even tighter.

"Tsuki, are you okay? Can you hear me?" Akumashugi asked as he helped her onto the bed.

"…baby…" Tsuki muttered between her groans of pain.

"What?" Akumashugi answered.

"…baby…coming…right…_now_…" Tsuki grunted.

Takeyama had taken the powder and made a magic circle all around them. Hoshimori was instructing him on the form and shape of it. The furniture in the living room had been pushed back for the process. Kikyo watched as Takeyama finished the circle.

"It is done," Takeyama said.

"The let it begin," Kikyo said, "Let us create the Jewel of Four Souls,"


	17. Act 17

Fanart for 'Moon and Destiny' is featured on my Deviantart site as well as the fanfic (go to my profile to get the website address). Also, check my artwork as well! It'd make me very happy.

Act 17:

"Are you sure this will work?" Kagome asked.

"I put a location spell along with the other enchantments," Kikyo answered, "It will drain me a little, bit it will give us enough range so that we can reach the others," She then paused for a minuet and shivered. "We must hurry…we must start this right now,"

"Now?" Sesshoumaru asked. He had taken his place in his part of the magic circle with Rin and Kikyo, "What's happening?"

"A great shift in the magical power of this world is going to occur unless we hurry," Kikyo answered. She then turned to Yoshimori and Takeyama, "I'll need you two to watch guard while we perform the spell. My defenses will be down,"

"We shall do as you command," Yoshimori answered.

"Good," Kikyo answered. She then opened her mouth and began to chant.

Tsuki had her teeth clenched as hard as possible. Akumashugi had ripped off some of his kimono and soaked it in water for a little while. He cautiously dabbed Tsuki's forehead.

"How are you feeling?" Akumashugi asked her.

"…pain…" Tsuki grunted.

"The time must be near now," Akumashugi sighed.

"…I don't know…" Tsuki grunted again, "…some women go into labor…for…hours…"

"Hours?" Akumashugi answered, "Let's hope not. Having you in pain like this for hours ould be terrible,"

"What are you complaining about? I'm the one giving birth!" Tsuki yelled.

"Relax," Akumashugi answered, "Stress is bad for the baby," He then paused. "I'll boil you some water. All I need you to do is lay back and relax," He then kissed Tsuki. "Relax, love. Everything is going to be alright,"

"Can't you do something about the pain?" Tsuki grunted.

"I'm afraid not," Akumashugi sighed. He gripped Tsuki's hand, "Grab my hand if you feel any pain," Akumashugi yelped as Tsuki clasped his hand, digging her claws into his hand.

"I love you, Akumashugi," Tsuki answered. Akumashugi croaked in reply.

Each of the incantations lit up one by one in the magic circle. First, the incantations on the outside lit up. Every incantation lit up in a spiral until it finally began to reach the empty middle of the circle. Kikyo's chanting was the only noise heard in the room but it seemed to echo through the house as she uttered the words of power in several unknown tongues. Shippou had stirred a little as the incantations glowed and his eyes widened with a mixture of fear and wonder as the chanting's speed slowly began to increase. But soon he began to feel dizzier than before and passed out.

Reichou had slunk up to his room. He wanted to shut out the world and it's occurrences for a little while and just be completely alone. So much had happened in so little time and all he wanted to do now was rest a little. But as he laid in bed all alone and with the blanket over him, the occurrences of the outside world was haunting him like a lost ghost. Suddenly, there was a pain in his chest. He grunted as he rolled over in bed, his body starting to contort and jolt suddenly. It felt as if something was sucking the life from him. Reichou grunted again and he felt hot and dizzy just as his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Shukuen was still puzzled at Reichou's behavior. He suddenly felt so guilty about it – as if it was his fault Reichou was so upset about something. He heard a noise from downstairs and walked towards the door. Suddenly, the room began to spin and he collapsed onto the ground. The last thing he saw was the meowing Fukakai before his eyes went into his head and everything turned black.

The pain was increasing with every minuet. Akumashugi did his best to keep Tsuki comfortable, but it was difficult in the cabin. He dabbed her forehead with his cool cloth and reassured her that it would all be over soon. Tears were forming in Tsuki's eyes as she clenched her teeth and held onto Akumashugi's hand. Akumashugi's hand was throbbing in pain from Tsuki's tight grip, but he didn't complain.

"It'll all be okay," Akumashugi whispered to Tsuki as he kissed her again, "All you need to do is keep calm, Tsuki. Is there anything I can do for you? Is there anything I can get you?"

"How about some painkillers?" Tsuki grunted.

Akumashugi kissed her again and ruffled her hair, "In a few more minuets, everything will be alright, love,"

Tsuki suddenly let out a yelp. She gurgled and groaned and held onto Akumashugi. Akumashugi tired to see what was wrong with her, but Tsuki groaned again and yelped. Finally, her eyes went into the back of head. Akumashugi gasped and tried to bring her back, but it was too late, Tsuki was gone.

_Tsuki found herself in a strange place. It was dark all around her. She was surrounded by darkened mist – constantly swirling around with no sign of true land or solid ground in sight. She looked around, trying to see where she was and trying to see what was going on when she realized she felt unusually light. She looked down to see that she was no longer pregnant and that she was her normal self again. _

'_What is this place?' Tsuki whispered to herself – but even her whisper echoed loudly in the mists and it seemed like she was all-alone in eternity. She looked around, trying to see if she wasn't alone here, to see that she wasn't to spend all eternity here alone in the darkening mists. She looked around – trying to see if there was a shadow of any sort of person or thing in this dark place. In the distance, she could see something ambling lost and lonely in the mists. Tsuki began to walk over them only to discover that there was no gravity and found herself flying over._

'_Do you know where I am?' Tsuki asked the person. Her voice seemed to echo in the eternity of the mists, 'Do you know where this place is?' _

'_Tsuki…?' said a voice. The person floated over to Tsuki. It was Shukuen – looking as lost and confused as she was. Shukuen's luxurious black hair was floating in the mists, 'Where are we? Is this…is this another world?' _

'_It might be…' Tsuki answered. _

'_Tsuki! Tsuki!' _

_Tsuki looked upwards to see Shippou floating down to them. By his side was Reichou. Shippou was looking healthy again – as if he had never been ill. He embraced Tsuki in a hug and Tsuki hugged him back. _

'_Shippou! You're alive!' Tsuki gasped, tears in her eyes. _

_Shippou nodded, 'Here I am. I don't think these are our physical bodies,' _

'_Are we…dead?' Reichou asked, 'Is this the afterlife?'_

'_No…I…I heard in the afterlife that we wouldn't remember anything about our previous lives…' Tsuki answered. _

'_You are not in the afterlife,' said a voice. It was a soft voice of a girl. Everyone looked upwards to see a glowing girl floating in midair, 'This is the second reality,' _

'_It's you!' Shippou said, 'You saved me! Your name was Rin right? ' _

_The girl smiled, 'That is the name of my physical body. Here, there are no names,' _

'_Where are we?' Tsuki asked. _

'_You are in the second reality,' Rin answered, 'Another plane of existence used by those who dabble in the arts of magic. This is the first level of the next plane – The Land of Mists. It's a place where dead spirits go when they haven't been truly good or evil in their lives. I believe some Westerners call it 'eternal limbo',' _

'_What are we doing here?' Reichou asked. _

'_You are going to make the next Jewel of Four Souls here,' Rin said, 'This is the only place where the magical part of it can be made without harming people in the process. This is where it's original power is forged. As we speak, the priestess Kikyo is summoning up the power of Four Souls to create it to combat the power of Four Angels,' _

'_Four Angels…' Shippou gasped, 'You mean…the Jewel of Four Angels is actually coming?' _

_Rin smiled sadly, 'It is coming right now,' _

_Tsuki was about to speak when she felt a pain in her chest again. _

'_What are you doing here?' Shukuen asked. _

'_My place in this ritual is to oversee the creation of jewel's powers,' Rin answered, 'Only one with an extrasensory ability can touch the powers without being burned,' She turned to Tsuki. 'Soul of Courage,' She turned to Shippou. 'Soul of Friendship,' She turned to Reichou. 'Soul of Knowledge,' She turned to Shukuen. 'Soul of Purity,' _

_Tsuki, Reichou, Shippou, and Shukuen croaked and their spirit bodies jolted as their skin began to pierce with light. soon, they no longer had spirit bodies in their shapes, but they were just chaotic globs of light. Rin chanting quietly as the light came to her. At first, she was scared to touch it – but found that it wasn't burning hot and was very cool. She collected it in her arms and the light melded. _

'_The Soul of Courage. The Soul of Friendship. The Soul of Knowledge. The Soul of Purity,' Rin chanting quietly, 'All shall come together to form the Four Souls. All shall come together to form the Four Souls of Light. All shall come together to form the Jewel of Four Souls. The jewel of light. A jewel to protect. A jewel to save,' _

_The spirits had molded together to form an orb of light – so small that it could fit into Rin's fist with ease. Rin stared at the tiny orb as it floated in midair. _

'_The Jewel of Four Souls has returned,'_

"TSUKI!"

Tsuki let out a gasp as the ear shattering yell filled the air. She looked around and found herself back in the cabin and back with a worried Akumashugi. She looked around to see that she was no longer in the mists and that she was back in her body. But something was different. Something was very different. She felt more open and more networked now – as if she was somehow connected to Shukuen, Shippou, and Reichou on a second, more intimate level; a level far more intimate than a secret, or love, or sex. It was something entirely new. Akumashugi held and kissed Tsuki, seeing her alive and well.

"Tsuki, oh Tsuki, don't scare me like that again," Akumashugi said, "I thought something truly terrible had happened to you. Don't ever do that again,"

Tsuki could breathe, "Akuma…aku…" Seeing that it was too difficult to speak, Tsuki just hugged Akumashugi back tenderly. Akumashugi held back onto her. He kissed her softly again and Tsuki kissed him back. But Tsuki let out another yelp of pain – far louder than the other yells – and shrieked as she clutched her stomach.

"The child!" Akumashugi said, "I almost forgot!"

Tsuki let out a long string of curses as she held onto her stomach. It felt as if a knife was trying to rip her open from the inside. Akumashugi helped her lay down and felt her stomach. He could feel the rapid and violent movements inside of it. He bit his lip and made sure Tsuki was comfortable as possible in her current situation.

"Alright, Tsuki, relax," Akumashugi said, "It's your time. It seems you passing out was just enough to put you _out_ of labor,"

A blinding light filled the room. Even Inu-Yasha had to close his sensitive eyes to the shining light. Kikyo continued chanting as best as she could, despite the fact that she was sweating and feeling tired. Sesshoumaru could feel a strange aura of power fill the room as he saw an orb slowly form in the air. Now came his role as the full blooded demon. Kikyo had told him of his role from before in the ritual. _"The Jewel's power is chaotic when it first comes into the physical world. Only one of true chaos can touch it and that is a demon,"_ Kikyo had stated. Sesshoumaru stood up and reached out for the jewel.

As soon as his claws touched it, he could feel the heat sweep over him and burn him. Holding back a cry of pain, he held onto the jewel as tightly as possible. The heating was making him sweat as well. Kikyo could see his discomfort but continued the chanting, blocking out all that was going around her. Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Takeyama, and Hoshimori could only watch as the light grew with a violent crackling noise. Electricity seemed to fill the very air as the jewel crackled.

After the crackling, the light disappeared. Sesshoumaru was still fighting pain with burned and bloody claws as he held the jewel. Kikyo slowly ceased chanting and she stood up. She outstretched her arms and took the jewel of Sesshoumaru. Kikyo observed the jewel in her palm for a little while in silence. It was silent all around.

"It is done," Kikyo stated, "the Jewel of Four Souls has returned,"

When the screaming and the crying was over, Akumashugi presented it to Tsuki. Tsuki was half delirious from the pain that she had gone through, but she looked at Akumashugi with a smile as he held a stained bundle.

"It's a girl," Akumashugi answered with a smile as he gave the bundle to Tsuki.

Tsuki looked down at the infant. It was a small little girl with tiny little claws. Her skin was pale and even though her eyes were half open, she could tell they were a ruby red. Her hair was white as well. An albino child, just like her father – except for one little thing: she had dog ears and a small silver tail.

Takeyama and Hoshimori stirred suddenly.

"We are too late," Takeyama muttered

"We have failed," Hoshimori answered.

"What?" Sesshoumaru answered as he picked an unconscious Rin up form the ground.

"What do you speak of?" Kikyo asked, "The Jewel of Four Souls has been created and the Jewel of Four Angels cannot harm us,"

"Not Jewel. The baby," Takeyama answered.

"What…?" Inu-Yasha asked.

Sesshoumaru's mind raced, _'When the most powerful of demons breed…'_ He then yelled, "NO! You can't be suggesting that after all of this…that you–"

Hoshimori answered him, "Powerful demons must not breed. Their spawn will be too powerful and kill many. They must be taken care of when they are infant or when the mother is with child,"

Sesshoumaru clenched his teeth, "Damn the Yousanjikai. Always trying to help themselves. You weren't here to originally save the world. No, you were here because you were supposed to kill the baby,"

"Your accusations are correct," Takeyama stated.

"I may not like the situation from which the child has been born," Inu-Yasha stated, "but it is still my grandchild and I won't let you harm it,"

"_Her_," Hoshimori corrected.

"Her…?" Kagome asked.

"The infant you speak of," Takeyama said, "is female,"

"She was born some few minuets ago," Hoshimori said.

"And she will die some minuets later by the hands of Yousanjikai,"

"_Wait_!" Kikyo commanded, "Did we not prevent the destruction of these worlds? Did we not save millions of lives, including yours?" Takeyama and Hoshimori were silent. "Does that not meant nothing to you Yousanjikai! Spare this child's life! It is not just some demon child to us; it is a part of a family!"

Takeyama and Hoshimori paused.

"We must do as we are commanded," Hoshimori answered silently. With this said, Takeyama and Hoshimori disappeared.

Tsuki quietly held little Shugotenshi, making sure not to make any loud noises around her so that she wouldn't frighten the infant. Shugotenshi was barely talking or moving, but her little eyes were observing everything around her. Most of all, she was staring up at Tsuki and Akumashugi. Akumashugi observed his child quietly.

"She looks just like her mother," Akumashugi whispered as his stroked some of the silver strands of hair on Shugotenshi's head. He then gently touched Shugotenshi's dog ears, "She's going to be a little dog goddess just like her,"

"This baby," Tsuki began, "she's fully demon isn't she?"

"Yes," Akumashugi answered, "If there is any human blood in her, the amount has to be insignificantly small. I think there must be less than a drop in her,"

"No matter," Tsuki answered, "Demon or no demon, this is my daughter,"

Akumashugi twitched suddenly and slipped off the bed. Two cloaked demons appeared in the cabin. Both of them looked the same and they were glaring at Tsuki and the baby she held in her hands.

"Who are you?" Akumashugi snarled, "What is your business here?"

"You know of us," the first demon said.

"We are Yousanjikai, the demon council," the second demon said, "and we have come for the infant,"

Tsuki held onto her baby, "…what?"

"The child is too powerful," stated the first demon.

"Give to us and it shall have a quick and painless death," stated the second.

"_No_!" Akumashugi yelled, "I won't let you Yousanjikai have my child!"

Shugotenshi was frightened by the loud noise and began to wail. Tsuki comforted and rocked the baby as best as she could. Shugotenshi continued crying. Tsuki glared at the demons and hissed, "You are idiots to think that we would give up our child. Leave…_now_,"

"We do not wish to harm you," the first demon said.

"We just want the child," the second demon said.

"You knew this would happen," the first demon said as he looked at Akumashugi.

Akumashugi growled, "No…I won't let you have my child! I'll be damned if I do!" Akumashugi reached into his kimono and pulled out a black and red jewel, stained with a little blood. The jewel pulsated with power and the demons quivered.

"The Jewel of Four Angels…" the second demon gasped.

Akumashugi clutched the jewel, "I knew you Yousanjikai would come for my child. I knew you would try to kill my child. I knew that this was the only thing that would stop you,"

"Are you mad?" hissed the first demon, "You'll kill us all!"

"Most demons would give their children up from money or glory or just to save their own damned skins! My mother did the same to me!" Akumashugi yelled, "She saw that her child was a demonic beasts and sold me off for a little gold just to make herself happy! She hated me and despised me! She hated her own _son_! Well, not this time. Not this time…" Akumashugi bitterly clenched the jewel. "My mother would sacrifice her child just to save herself. I would sacrifice myself to save my child.

The twin demons were silent, "This jewel may have the power to destroy entire worlds but it as it has the power of darkness, it has the power of light. It can destroy, but it can also create. I will create another world where my child, my lover and myself can be together forever and in peace from you damned demons!"

The twin demons were silent. Finally, the first demon spoke:

"We must do as we are commanded,"

Akumashugi spoke next, "Then die,"

The twin demons bared their sharpened claws and leapt towards Akumashugi and Tsuki. Tsuki screamed, too weak to move, fight, or defend herself or the baby, and Akumashugi stood there like a wall. He raised the jewel and it shined with light. The twin demons screamed in pain and collapsed onto the ground. Within minuets they were covered with sores and oozing wounds.

Pestilence: one of the four angels had attacked.

"…akumashugi…" Tsuki began, "…what's this all about?"

Akumashugi turned to look at Tsuki. He put the jewel back in his kimono and held onto her, "I'm sorry, Tsuki. Everything's going to be alright. I'll make sure our little Shugotenshi will be protected," Akumashugi took the Jewel of Four Angels and placed it in Shugotenshi's little arms. "This belongs to you more than I, little one. You were born with it. It is yours. I have no right to use it. I see it now. This is something that you must use. I see that now,"

Shugotenshi's eyes were still half open, but she seemed to understand what Akumashugi meant. This was her jewel. She would have to decide what to do with it. Her crying ceased and she simply laid there staring up at her young parents.

"You don't understand…" gurgled one of the demons, "…you'll never be safe…we will come…we will be ready…we shall take the child…we shall kill you...we shall kill the child…we must or all is lost…"

"All will be lost if you harm our baby," Tsuki answered. The twin demons let out a cry of pain and died from their wounds. They disintegrated into dust as soon as their life left them. Tsuki cradled Shugotenshi quietly and kissed the infant on her head, "They won't harm you, my little Shugotenshi,"

"Not while we still love you," Akumashugi answered.

Birds began to chirp. The sun was rising and another day was beginning with them in their new life.


	18. Final Act

The Final Act:

Everything was silent in the room as soon as Souta appeared. He looked on to see the faces he hadn't seen in years – his elder sister Kagome, his brother-in-law Inu-Yasha, and Kagome's friend Sango and her son Reichou (strangely enough, Sango's husband Miroku wasn't present). It was silent for a few minuets until Souta began to speak.

"We are gathered here this day to unite this man, Akumashugi, and this woman, Tsuki, in holy matrimony which is an honorable estate," Souta said.

It had been only a week after the affair with the demons and the jewels.

"Into this, these two now come to be joined,"

Akumashugi had teleported Tsuki and Shugotenshi back to the Higurashi home. Kagome and Inu-Yasha were overjoyed to have their daughter back.

"If anyone present can show just and legal cause why they may not be joined, let them speak now or forever hold their peace,"

Inu-Yasha had not approved of the marriage, but wanted his grandchild to have a father. He remained silent as Souta paused.

"Who give this woman to this man?"

"I do," Inu-Yasha stated quietly, almost choking on his words. He looked at Tsuki with a look of longing pain in his eyes – to see his 16-year-old daughter so young a beautiful bride. He then glanced a little at Kagome, who was holding baby Shugotenshi.

"Akumashugi," Souta said, "will you have this woman as your lawful wedded wife, to live together in the estate of matrimony?"

Sesshoumaru and Kikyo said they would remain the second world only for a little while (or to at least see the wedding).

"Will you love her, honor her, comfort her, and keep her in sickness and in health; forsaking all others, be true to her as long as you both shall live?" Souta asked.

Kagome and Tsuki had slept and eaten little while preparing the makeshift wedding in the backyard.

"I will," Akumashugi answered.

Kagome had even talked her younger brother Souta into being the priest.

"Tsuki," Souta said, "will you have this man as your lawful wedded husband, to live together in the estate of matrimony?"

Ever since the death of their grandfather, Souta decided he would be just like him.

"Will you love him, honor him, comfort him, and keep him in sickness and in health; forsaking all others, be true to him as long as you both shall live?"

Tsuki wore her mother's old wedding dress. Akumashugi wore his best kimono.

"I will," Tsuki answered.

Sango had arranged the colors, flowers, and other arrangements for the wedding. Rin was the flower girl. Shippou was the ring bearer. Shukuen was Tsuki's 'bride's maid' of sorts. Everyone turned their heads a little to see little Rin walking down the aisle scattering flowers. She wore a blue and white kimono. Sesshoumaru smiled as a little as he watched his adopted daughter go down the aisle, but glowered when he saw Shippou walking next to her. He gave him one of his 'you touch her and you die' glares.

"Behold the symbol of wedlock," Souta said. Shippou kneeled and presented the rings on the pillow he was carrying, "The perfect circle of love, the unbroken union of this man and this woman united here today. May you both remain faithful to this symbol of true love,"

Akumashugi gently took the rings.

"Please joins hands and repeat after me," Souta instructed. Akumashugi and Tsuki held hands, "I, Akumashugi take Tsuki as my wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part,"

"I, Akumashugi," Akumashugi said as he placed the ring on Tsuki's finger, "take Tsuki as my wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part,"

"Repeat after me," Souta instructed again, "I, Tsuki, take Akumashugi as my wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part,"

"I, Tsuki," Tsuki said as she placed the ring on Akumashugi's finger, "take Akumashugi as my wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part,"

"For as much as Tsuki and Akumashugi have consented together in wedlock, and have witnessed the same before this company of friends and family," Souta said, "and have given and pledged their promises to each other, and have declared the same by giving and receiving a ring, and by joining hands. By the authority invested –"

A loud wailing filled the area. Souta stopped speaking. Kagome rocked and held Shugotenshi, trying to keep the infant quiet, but she kept on crying. Tsuki sighed and made an apologetic face at her uncle.

"Excuse me," Tsuki said quietly. She walked down from the platform and towards her mother. She gently took Shugotenshi into her arms and held her. As soon as she was back with her mother, Shugotenshi stopped crying. Tsuki then quietly walked back up the platform and smiled, trying to make it seem as if nothing had happened at all, "Continue please,"

"By the authority invested in me by the city of Tokyo, I now pronounce you husband and wife," Souta stated, "You may now kiss the bride,"

Akumashugi embraced Tsuki in a kiss like he had done so many times before but this kiss was different – it seemed to be a kiss that would keep them intertwined and enlaced forever. Everyone clapped and cheered.

The wedding reception was small and held in the backyard. The bride and groom chatting with family and friends about several different things. Rin didn't like all the noise and fuss that was going on and found herself sitting alone at a table. She saw Shippou approach her. He offered her a cup and Rin took it. Shippou then gurgled something and Rin sighed.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't give you speech," Rin said, looking to cry, "I know how inconvenient it is to be mute,"

'_Don't worry about it,'_

Rin blinked. She looked at Shippou, "Did you…?"

'_It seems that when my soul melded with Tsuki, Reichou, and Shukuen's,'_ Shippou answered, _'we became joined in a way. Or joined enough to at least give me some sort of jolt to my already existing demonic powers. Whatever the reason, I don't need my mouth to speak,'_

Rin smiled, "That's good,"

A few feet from Rin and Shippou, Sesshoumaru was glowering. Kikyo stood next to him.

"I don't like him," Sesshoumaru growled, folding his arms.

"She's at that age, Sesshoumaru," Kikyo said, "She's going to want to talk to boys,"

"That's what Kagome said about their child and look happened," Sesshoumaru muttered.

Kikyo paused, "Rin! Come over here!"

Reichou wanted to be away from all the noise and laughter that was going on. Deep inside, he was still aching. He was still upset and unsettled about Shukuen, about his father, about everything. His mother was trying to act all happy and nice while deep down inside she was crying out for her son and husband. Reichou sighed as he walked away from the wedding in an aimless direction – looking down at his feet, remembering the pain that haunted him.

Reichou felt lost. He didn't know what to do. There was no one that could help him and there was no one that would help him. Reichou felt the cold wind at his back and he looked up to find that he had wandered into what looked like the park – except the trees were thicker and closer. Everything seemed claustrophobic.

_Reichou… _

Reichou looked around. He tried to find the voice. It was like a wraith coming to him from its warm freshly dug grave; trying to lead him down to the gates of hell.

_Reichou… _

"Who…who's there?" Reichou said. He felt the air grow cold.

_Reichou… _

Reichou turned around, trying to find the source of the voice. He saw out of the corner of his eye a figure shrouded in a dark cloak, the color of the night sky. It had grown dark and it was hard to see the face under the cloak, but Reichou could make out the glowing red eyes underneath.

_Reichou…_it uttered.

"What…what do you…want?" Reichou gasped, shaking all over. He felt fear. He felt the same fear that had splashed through his veins on that night. That terrible night. Reichou was shaking all over and he felt like he was going to faint or wet himself.

_I want what you want…_it uttered again.

"What…what I want?" Reichou panted. He then felt his knees buckle, "Are…are you a demon?" He then held up his hands in defense. "Please! Please don't hurt me!"

_I will not hurt you, Reichou…I could have done that from before…_it uttered again, _Reichou, I see the pain in your eyes…I see the fear…I know what ails you…I know what he did to you…he had no right, Reichou…he deserves to be punished…harshly… _

Reichou felt tears forming in his eyes, "…but…Shukuen…my friend…"

_Would a friend hurt you like that, Reichou? Would a friend do something so cruel and violent to you? _it said. _Reichou, you must avenge yourself. You must avenge your innocence. I will help you, Reichou. I will help you regain your power and avenge yourself. Isn't that what you want, Reichou? Vengeance? _

Reichou paused. Time paused.

"Yes…" Reichou clenched his fist. "…yes that is what I want…the only way for me to live with myself would be revenge…teach me your ways,"

The cloaked figure nodded, _So shall it be. Take my hand, my student, and your lessons shall begin. _

The cloaked figure extended out a thin, ivory, hand. Reichou wasn't sure at first. Then he remembered the pain and the anguish that Shukuen had caused him and he thrust out his hand towards the cloaked figure and gripped his hand.

Reichou and the figure disappeared into a puff of smoke.

Shukuen paused. He felt a sudden pain in his chest and he paused. Kagome noticed he had stopped talking and looked at him.

"Shukuen? Are you okay?" Kagome asked.

Shukuen nodded, "I'm fine, Mom," Kagome shrugged and went on talking with Sango. Shukuen felt a burning from his right hand. He looked at it to find that the tips of his fingernails were starting to grow out and sharpen. Shukuen looked quizzically at them, but then hid the hand when Tsuki came by. He smiled at his older sister, the beautiful bride, holding his niece in her arms.

"Hey, Shukuen," Tsuki said. Shugotenshi gurgled up at Shukuen, "Shugotenshi says hello also,"

"Hi, there," Shukuen said gently as he used his left hand to play with Shugotenshi's little palm. Shugotenshi fiercely gripped his finger. Shukuen made a face as he tried to retrieve his finger, "…um…Tsuki…she won't let go of me…"

"Sorry about that," Tsuki said, "She's got a little bit of grip. Okay, sweetie, let go of your uncle," With a little coaxing from Tsuki, Shugotenshi eventually let go. Tsuki then kissed her infant and smiled at Shukuen. "How are you doing? You've been acting a little weird lately,"

"I guess its Reichou," Shukuen sighed, "I…I think he's avoiding me but I don't know why. Before, he was afraid to even let me touch him. I think I did something, but I don't remember doing anything to him," He made a face. "Maybe he just doesn't like me…"

Tsuki patted her brother on the shoulder, "Oh, relax, Shukuen. Didn't you hear? Sango and Miroku are having a divorce, and divorces make people act funny. Give him some time,"

Shukuen sighed, "…I guess so…" He then changed the subject. "Where are Akumashugi and you staying in the house?"

"We're turning the guest bedroom into our room. When Shugotenshi is old enough, she'll have yours – you'll probably be in college by then. For now, you'll have the room for yourself,"

"Wow…we've always shared a room. It's going to be weird when I'm all alone there,"

"Relax," Tsuki laughed, "Fukakai will keep your company,"

Shukuen laughed too, "As if that cat _likes_ me!"

"Hey, can we talk?"

Akumashugi looked up from the cup of champagne. He saw Inu-Yasha standing on the other end of the table. Akumashugi gave a nod and Inu-Yasha sat at the chair on the other end of the table. Akumashugi could feel some of the alcohol coursing in his veins, but he did his best to try and keep his head.

"I suppose we should try and settle our differences since you're going to be living with us now," Inu-Yasha grumbled, "I won't say that I'm angry with you or anything like that – I just want to know something: do you truly love my daughter?"

Akumashugi tilted his head and paused, "Mr. Higurashi, if I didn't love your daughter, do you think I would _be_ here right now? Most guys at my position in my age would have left Tsuki as soon as she told me she was pregnant. Most guys would have left the country. But I didn't. I stayed with her. I'm marrying her. And I'm going to keep on staying married to her for the rest of my natural life," He then took a sip of champagne. "I love Tsuki. I love our little Shugotenshi. What more proof do you need?"

Inu-Yasha said nothing.

Akumashugi continued on talking, "Tell me something, Mr. Higurashi, do you hate because I got your daughter pregnant or do you hate me because I'm the spawn of your greatest enemy?"

Inu-Yasha paused. He then looked away, "…let's just say I'm having trouble deciding between the two,"

It was some hours after the party. Everyone had gone home. Sesshoumaru, Kikyo, and Rin returned to Sengoku no Jidai. Akumashugi helped Tsuki up to their new bedroom. Tsuki carefully had Shugotenshi in her arms. The bedroom wasn't much at the moment with just a bed and cradle in it, but it would do for now. Tsuki gently put sleepy Shugotenshi in her crib and observed her for a few minuets until the baby fell asleep.

"She's going to be very beautiful when she grows up," Akumashugi said as he kissed Tsuki on the cheek.

Tsuki sighed, "Don't talk about her growing up right now. I'm stressed enough,"

Akumashugi smiled and led Tsuki away from the crib and into bed, "I suppose this isn't much of a honeymoon considering how Shugotenshi is here,"

"I'd rather not have sex, anyways," Tsuki said as she kissed Akumashugi, "The doctor said that it would be some days before I could,"

Akumashugi made a disappointed face but cuddled his wife. Tsuki smiled and turned out the light. She listened to the sound of her infant breathing steadily as she slept and Akumashugi kissed her neck. She saw through the window the round and silver moon watching over them like a great eye.

Shugotenshi was crying. Tsuki growled and got out of bed to find that it was nearly dawn. Akumashugi grumpily rolled over in bed, putting a pillow to his ears to blot out the sounds. Inu-Yasha was angrily complaining down the hallway about the noise and Kagome was yelling at him for complaining about their grandchild. She could hear Shukuen sleepily walking around – knowing that he would never get back to sleep now.

Tsuki made a face as she changed Shugotenshi's diaper and nursed her in the rocking chair. Akumashugi mumbled a 'good morning' and headed downstairs to go make himself breakfast. Tsuki looked out the window to see that the sun was rising over yet another day in paradise.

END.

That's it, fans! The end! The final act! The big finale! The end of 'Moon and Destiny'! I'd like to thank all those that reviewed this story and gave me the energy to keep on going (even when I had a terrible case of writer's block!). (sends out hugs and kisses) Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! As for a sequel, it may or may not come into existence. I am debating. Thank you all of you people out there. Thank you reviewers. Thank you Rumiko Takahashi. Thank you o great muse of mine. Thank you everybody. Good-bye.

ZeroSoul


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